Philia, Eros
by Bontaque
Summary: A look at the evolving relationship of Mike and Trevor. Basically and excuse for me to write a long, long running fic because I have never done with that. Stick with me, much sex to come.
1. Chapter 1

Mike's teacher's words rang in his ears as he walked to his next class. _I don't know why you're friends with that boy. He gets you into so much trouble._

It was true. Trevor got him into a lot of trouble. Mike wouldn't have it any other way. He knew that Trevor would be there for him if he ever needed him. Or he knew he'd at least try to be and that was more than he could say about anyone else. Besides, trouble could be fun sometimes.

Mike wanted to congratulate himself on staying calm. He had almost taken the day off of school but he hadn't wanted Grammy to make a fuss. On top of everything, he didn't want to have to defend his oldest friend before he'd even seen him. He had Biology next, one of the many classes in which the teacher had realised that they probably shouldn't sit together.

He spent the next forty minutes listening to the teacher talk about protein synthesis, making unnecessary notes on mRNA and tRNA whilst Trevor made faces at him from across the room.

"Do you get this?" his lab partner asked, looking frustrated.

"Yeah, what's wrong?" he asked.

"I don't understand the difference between the rough and smooth... reticulum? Where does the smooth stuff come in?"

"The smooth endoplasmic reticulum? It isn't involved in the protein synthesis," Mike said, trying not to sound like he was recalling it straight from the text book. "It makes lipids and steroids."

"Oh! Thanks," Jenny said, smiling and scribbling a note in the margin of her book.

Trevor rolled his eyes at Mike from the front of the class. He was always telling him that Jenny seemed to like him.

When the bell sounded for lunch, Mike packed up quickly to make sure he'd catch up with Trevor. They were friends but it was pizza day so there were no guarantees. To his surprise, Trevor was standing outside the classroom waiting for him.

"You alright man?" he asked him.

"Uh yeah," Mike replied. "Trevor. _Pizza day_."

"I know, I know. Just wanted to make sure I got a chance to ask you if you wanted to come round tonight. Free house, weed and bad movies?"

That did sound perfect and Mike had been hoping he could get out of the house tonight. He agreed and they headed off to the cafeteria.

When Trevor let him have the last slice of pepperoni, taking the vegetable for himself, Mike knew something was up. He wasn't just in a good mood about the free house; Mike had known Trevor long enough to know that nothing came between him and pepperoni. He'd remembered. Trevor knew what day it was.

"You can have the pepperoni," he said, when they found seats. "You don't have to be nice to me just because... you know."

Trevor rolled his eyes.

"I was that obvious? Just wanted to make sure you were alright, man."

Mike wished his Literature teacher was there to see this. Even he was kind of surprised that Trevor had remembered that it was the anniversary of his parents' death.

All things considered, Mike's day hadn't been as bad as it could have been. His grandmother hadn't even stopped him from staying over at Trevor's even though it was a school night. He grabbed some clothes for the next day and headed over straight after dinner.

The basement was already set up how they always had it when he got there. The double mattress from the guest bedroom was on the floor in the corner, sheets in a pile on top. There were snacks piled up on the table, two joints already rolled and the tv was ready on the DVD channel.

"Fuck, I love it when they leave town," Mike said. It had been way too long since they'd been able to do this.

They flopped down onto the large beanbag in front of the tv; it was hard to arrange themselves in a way that wasn't awkward, but it was cooler than the couch.

It just was.

"What level of terrible do you want?" Trevor asked.

Mike never knew where he found these movies but they were always dreadful and he exactly which ones Mike would love.

"The worst. Absolute worst."

"Well I have two for you. One is much worse technically. Bad CGI and stuff. Want to save the worst for last?"

Mike nodded and looked down at the DVDs Trevor had burned himself. His untidy writing was on both of them: _Black Swarm _and _Sharktopus_. This was going to be a good night.

Half way through _Black Swarm_, Trevor passed the first joint to Mike but he declined.

They always had two, but not one each. They split them both, saving the second one until the high started to fade. Trevor offering him the first hit was pretty much as big as him giving up the pizza.

Mike watched Trevor light it, laughing a little when he fumbled with the lighter. He took it when it was passed to him and inhaled deeply.

The film only got worse (so much better) and the slight high added to it.

Mike passed the joint back to Trevor and tried to focus on the film. Did that man have wasps in his ear? What? He felt Trevor un-tense next to him, sliding down the beanbag slightly, no longer focusing on holding himself upright. Mike kind of appreciated the contact; if Trevor got a little affectionate when he was high (which he did) he was going to let him. He turned on the beanbag a little to get comfortable, rolling into a half-cuddling position. He barely thought anything of it. They were friends, it was cool and Trevor only made a big deal out of it in public.

When the film ended, Mike didn't have too much to say. He was laughing too much at the ridiculous ending and the way that Trevor was completely failing to get up to change the DVD.

"It's not funny! Help me? It's like it's eaten me," he said.

"It's hilarious, actually," Mike replied, letting him struggle for a second or to before pushing him up.

Trevor struggled to change the DVD. Mike always tried to be sensible, meaning he usually ended up smoking more than half his share of the weed. He'd thought he was fine until he'd tried to stand up but now everything seemed to be a little further away than it looked. Or something like that. Once he'd successfully changed the DVD to Sharktopus, he turned and flopped back down onto the beanbag, curling around Mike. He seemed happy, which was good. He'd felt a bit awkward being extra nice to him but he still remembered how upset he'd been last year. That had been pretty heart breaking. You know, if there was a way to say that without sounding ridiculous.

"Trev?" Mike asked sleepily. "Pass me a soda?"

Trevor felt around behind him, grasping around for anything for anything can shaped. He found one and handed it to Mike, laughing as he struggled to open it. He lit up the second joint, passing it to Mike after a few hits.

They spent the rest of the film laughing at he horrendous CGI and the fact that "Sharktopus" actually meant something with the head of a shark and the tentacles of an octopus.

They still had school the next day so as soon as it finished, they stumbled over to the mattress.

Mike tried to pull the sheets into something that resembled a made bed as Trevor undressed behind him. He should have done this before but he never learned. He did his best before kicking off his shoes and jeans and getting into bed. When he felt Trevor slide in beside him, he wanted to thank him. He knew he'd put thought into taking his mind off of everything tonight and bad movie night was the best way to do that. He tried to think of a way to put it that wouldn't make Trevor laugh at him but then he heard his soft snoring and made a note to remember in the morning.

Mike had to work hard to convince his Gram to let him go to a party with Trevor. She never really liked him but she was polite enough to never say anything about it. He hadn't done anything with him for two weeks, not since he'd stayed over.

Somehow, since then, Trevor had gotten together with Jenny. It had been strange at first, the two of them hadn't shown much interest in each other before, but Mike didn't mind. The only bad thing was that Trevor had been spending most of his free time with her and even more texting Mike about it. Mike wasn't jealous. Not one bit.

He checked himself over in the mirror quickly before running downstairs. He thought Jenny would be coming too but Trevor told him that she'd had to work.

The party was in full swing by the time they got there. Drinks were passed around, Trevor filled him in on what he'd managed to get up to with Jenny (kissing, a little more) and then someone suggested spin the bottle. Every one protested but it ended up happening anyway.

Trevor sat down beside Mike but then someone, a girl he didn't recognise, squeezed between them. She was pretty drunk.

The bottle began to spin and landed on a girl opposite Mike, then Gary, the person who had thrown the party. They kissed, a few people giggled.

Five minutes later, there had been seven more kisses with little protest, not even when the girl next to Mike had to kiss Charlotte Harris.

Trevor was starting to get a little bored. People had gotten a little overly excited that two girls had had to kiss but it wasn't really a big deal. When the bottle picked two guys, they protested and Gary told them they'd have to pay a forfeit of $5 each for backing out. They paid up. The next spin landed on Mike and then a girl named Elle.

Trevor watched as Mike leaned forwards as Elle crawled towards him. They kissed and there were a few noises from the people who could see as she slid her hand up to cup his face before pulling away. Mike flashed a grin at Trevor before sitting back down.

Trevor began to worry a little. The alcohol had started to wear off and he was now wondering if kissing someone in a game of spin the bottle counted as cheating. Then it landed on him. There were whispers from the circle as the next spin landed on Mike.

"I don't have any cash on me," he said looking at Mike quickly.

He knew that Mike didn't have any, either. They hadn't seen any point bringing money to a house party. He didn't mind. He hadn't kissed anyone yet and it was Mike. It was fine.

The girl between them moved back, giving them room to move forwards into. Mike just shrugged and Trevor tried to ignore the feeling of everyone's eyes on him. Suddenly they were kissing and Trevor was trying not to think about the way his heart was pounding in his chest. He had another warm body pressed up against him, it was only natural.

When they pulled apart, Mike didn't meet his eye. Trevor was pretty sure that it was because, for a moment, he'd forgotten who he was kissing and he might have gone a little too far.

By Sunday evening, when Mike hadn't heard from Trevor, he was starting to worry. Not that it should be a big deal, they just kissed, but some of the people at the party had gone on about it for a while and Mike was worried that Trevor was going to be awkward about it. He hadn't been to great on the walk home.

He logged into Skype and was relieved to see him online.

[7:47:47 PM] Mike Ross: Hey.  
>[7:48:09 PM] Trevor Evans: hey<br>[7:48:32 PM] Mike Ross: Um, how's everything?  
>[7:48:50 PM] Trevor Evans: alright why?<br>[7:48:55 PM] Trevor Evans: you sound worried or something  
>[7:49:40 PM] Mike Ross: No, I'm not worried. I just...well, we didn't talk at all on Saturday.<br>[7:49:57 PM] Mike Ross: I was just wondering if everything was okay.  
>[7:50:08 PM] Trevor Evans: yeah its good I guess<br>[7:50:16 PM] Trevor Evans: I slept pretty late because of the party  
>[7:50:28 PM] Trevor Evans: didnt sleep much when I got in<br>[7:50:34 PM] Trevor Evans: are you alright then?  
>[7:50:49 PM] Mike Ross: Yeah. I slept in, too.<br>[7:50:51 PM] Mike Ross: It was a fun party, though.  
>[7:51:01 PM] Trevor Evans: er yeah<br>[7:51:03 PM] Trevor Evans: I guess  
>[7:51:21 PM] Trevor Evans: I mean we didnt really know many of them but it was alright<br>[7:51:45 PM] Mike Ross: I suppose.  
>[7:52:03 PM] Mike Ross: I meant that it was fun because we haven't done that sort of thing in a while?<br>7:52:12 PM] Mike Ross: IDK  
>[7:52:24 PM] Trevor Evans: yeah I get what you mean<br>[7:52:29 PM] Trevor Evans: we dont exactly get out much  
>[7:53:02 PM] Trevor Evans: do you think anyone will make a big deal out of the spin the bottle thing?<br>[7:53:39 PM] Mike Ross: I don't think so.  
>[7:54:00 PM] Mike Ross: I mean, we had to. It was part of the game.<br>[7:54:05 PM] Trevor Evans: well yeah but  
>[7:54:15 PM] Trevor Evans: the other guys didnt they just paid the forfeit money<br>[7:54:30 PM] Trevor Evans: I mean I know we didnt have a choice because we didnt have any but still  
>[7:54:48 PM] Trevor Evans: I guess if we just act cool about it it wont matter?<br>[7:54:58 PM] Mike Ross: Hey, I think that because we didn't chicken out makes us better than them  
>[7:55:03 PM] Mike Ross: or something, lol<br>[7:55:08 PM] Trevor Evans: yeah I guess  
>[7:55:29 PM] Trevor Evans: I probably wouldnt have done it if it was anyone but you<br>[7:55:33 PM] Trevor Evans: not in a weird way  
>[7:55:35 PM] Trevor Evans: just like<br>[7:55:44 PM] Trevor Evans: I know you and stuff so it isnt weird  
>[7:55:48 PM] Trevor Evans: yeah?<br>[7:56:20 PM] Mike Ross: I understand.  
>[7:56:27 PM] Mike Ross: We're just so comfortable, you know?<br>[7:56:56 PM] Trevor Evans: to be honest I was kinda scared it was going to be awkward  
>[7:57:01 PM] Trevor Evans: it was a bit on the way home<br>[7:57:40 PM] Mike Ross: Yeah...  
>[7:57:43 PM] Mike Ross: it was<br>[7:57:59 PM] Trevor Evans: sorry about that  
>[7:58:37 PM] Mike Ross: No, man, it's not your fault.<br>[7:58:55 PM] Trevor Evans: k  
>[7:59:04 PM] Trevor Evans: I wasnt sure if Id done anything<br>[7:59:16 PM] Trevor Evans: if youre okay about it Im cool  
>[8:00:18 PM] Trevor Evans: obviously you were just overwhelmed by my fantastic kissing skills<br>[8:00:23 PM] Mike Ross: Obviously.  
>[8:01:24 PM] Trevor Evans: I know Im good and everything just dont be trying for more next time were high okay?<br>[8:02:15 PM] Mike Ross: Okay, I promise.  
>[8:02:36 PM] Trevor Evans: I would and everything but I dont think Jenny would like it<br>[8:03:05 PM] Mike Ross: Did she say something to you?  
>[8:03:20 PM] Trevor Evans: no man I was kidding<br>[8:03:23 PM] Trevor Evans: you know that right?  
>[8:03:28 PM] Trevor Evans: I havent told her yet<br>[8:03:36 PM] Trevor Evans: I hope she doesnt actually mind  
>[8:04:10 PM] Mike Ross: I hope so, too.<br>[8:04:33 PM] Trevor Evans: man  
>[8:04:37 PM] Trevor Evans: you knew I was kidding right?<br>[8:04:54 PM] Mike Ross: Yeah! 

Trevor took a deep breath and tried not to freak out. For a second, he'd thought Mike might have thought he was serious about liking the kiss. He didn't want to think about that. Not that that stopped it. It was pretty much what he'd been thinking about non-stop since he'd gotten home on Friday night. He'd decided to tell himself it was no big deal. He was allowed to enjoy a kiss with his friend without it meaning anything. He wasn't sure he believed it, though.


	2. Chapter 2

Mike tried not to think about the kiss on Monday. It was no big deal. Trevor didn't seem to think it mattered at all. Besides, almost all of their essays were due Friday, he didn't have time to worry about a really weird kiss with his best friend.

At lunch, he saw Jenny sitting alone at a table, staring furiously at a book as if willing the words to jump right off the page and into her brain.

"Everything okay?" he asked, sitting down opposite her.

"I guess. I just don't really get this book. Well, I do, I just think I've hit a wall," she said.

"Anything you don't get in particular?"

"All of the words are running into one," she said. "Here: An after image is the physiological visual phenomenon that takes place -"

"- after the human eye has been fixed or focused on any visual information?"

"Ugh, how do you know that?" she asked, rolling her eyes.

"Why are you reading about visual literacy? You don't take psych, right?"

"Oh no, it's for art," she said. "We're doing a theoretical unit and I just _had_ to choose to go down the perception route."

"It's okay, that whole page is just about how and why you see a negative image if you look at a blank piece of paper after staring at an image for too long."

"Like those illusion things?"

"Exactly."

Jes"Hey guys," Trevor said as he sat down next to Mike.

"I could have moved my books," Jenny said, half standing up to clear the table next to her.

"Don't worry about it," Trevor replied. "We have class together next, anyway."

"I was thinking, do you want to catch a movie Friday night?"

"Can't, babe. Promised Mike he could stay over the next time my parents were out. They've got a wedding to go to."

"I don't mind, if you want to go out with Jenny."

It was a lie. He didn't have anything to do on Friday and he didn't feel like watching bad re-runs again, but Jenny looked disappointed.

"No, no, a promise is a promise," Trevor said with a grin. "We can go out another night, right? Sunday?"

She nodded as the lunch bell sounded. They packed away their things and split off.

Friday came quickly, with Mike helping both Trevor and Jenny with their work. He didn't mind doing it and it made life easier for him when the two people he actually spent any time with weren't nervous about the deadline. There was a collective sigh from the whole school when the deadline rolled over and everyone could quit worrying.

Between now and Christmas break, not much would happen and the teachers joked that they might as well break up now. Mike couldn't think of a better time to stay over at Trevor's

The door was open when he got there so he went in and locked it behind him before going down to the basement. Trevor grinned up at him, a pizza box open on his lap.

"You're late," he said. "Started without you."

"Yeah, sorry, had to let Grammy know where I was going."

Mike settled down next to him and grabbed a slice.

"What? Are we celebrating or something?" Mike asked, motioning to the string of cheese hanging out of the crust.

"I dunno," Trevor shrugged. "You like it and I owe you for the essay help, man."

It was true, he'd spent a good part of last week overtired after helping him, but he always felt a little guilty that he did so well at school without even trying, so he didn't mind.

It was a proven fact that bad television was actually made bearable, if not enjoyable, by weed. That was why, two hours later, Mike and Trevor were watching grown men and woman attempting to cross and obstacle course in ill-fitting lycra, both of them convinced that they could do better. When Trevor passed him the joint again, Mike took another hit, ignoring the way it tasted a little familiar. Not the weed, the paper itself. It was making him think back to the kiss and he wasn't prepared to deal with that right now.

Trevor got up from the beanbag to grab some drinks and drag the blanket over. The basement was heated but the heat escaped quickly in the winter. He dropped back down onto the beanbag, handing Mike one of the sodas and offering him a corner of the blanket.

"You want some of this on you, too?" he asked.

Mike nodded so Trevor shook the blanket out over the pair of them, relieved at the sudden warmth.

Sometimes, Mike made it so hard to not just stare at him. He was always so perfect, able to recall anything you needed, ready to help out anyone he could. Trevor knew that on anyone else, it might have seemed arrogant, his kindness looking more like kissing up but Mike seemed immune to the "nice guys finish last" philosophy. At the moment, Trevor just wanted to look at him. He stared at the way his lips tightened a little around the joint when he took a hit, the curve of his nose, the way his eyes were just so bright when he realised that Mike was looking right at him.

"What? You want some?" Mike asked, offering the joint to him.

He didn't. He didn't want to risk completely losing his composure in front of him in case he did something stupid like lean down and kiss him again but he took it anyway, he had to cover up the staring.

Mike just grinned, the way he usually did before they did something stupid and risky. It made Trevor's stomach do a stupid little flip.

"Open your mouth."

Trevor would have questioned it but somewhere in his hazy mind, he realised that would involve opening his mouth anyway, so he just did it.

He watched as Mike put the joint to his lips, taking a deep drag before moving closer. He was, at most, three inches away when he let out his breath, his lips forming a small o to direct the smoke into Trevor's mouth. Somehow, he managed to take it without choking, the shock not quite registering until he was exhaling again.

"Again?" Mike asked.

He didn't understand why he was doing this all of a sudden, but Trevor wasn't going to say no. He nodded and waited, watching Mike take another drag, before opening his mouth again.

He really felt it the second time around. Mike's breath was warm and it tasted so much better this way. He took it all, resisting the urge to close the gap between them. This time, when he exhaled, Mike was still there, ready to take it back.

Mike thought that this was probably as close as he could get to kissing Trevor without actually doing it. It was strange how close it was to being enough, the exchange intimate, going much deeper than their lips and mouths. Maybe it was just the high but Mike didn't think he'd ever known anything so perfect Then again, just the knowledge that it wasn't a kiss, that he couldn't just kiss him, that ruined it. That was why this could never be as good.

Okay, so maybe he was kind of attracted to Trevor.

He couldn't help it, Trevor might not be the most responsible person he knew but he was fun. He'd had the most fun he'd ever had with him and they could fill an afternoon just talking. Not that they ever talked about anything important. Trevor... excited him? Could he put it like that? He'd be bored to death without him. Not to mention the fact that Trevor was pretty hot. He'd decided that he might as well start admitting that to himself. Everyone thought so, that much was obvious. He was the guy that all the girls would look at but few would actually date (mostly because if they were the type who had to bring their boyfriends home to meet their fathers... there was no hope for them.)

Mike knew he shouldn't find his attitude sexy but he did. He'd thought about it before but had usually chosen to ignore how he felt but now, with Trevor so close, grinning as they swapped smoke? He couldn't ignore how attracted to him he was.

When he got into bed beside Trevor that night, he wondered if he'd be able to map out his freckles from memory.


	3. Chapter 3

Monday was quiet. Everyone knew that they had nothing to do. Some teachers still tried to set normal lessons, to get a head start on the material for January but most of them knew that there was no point. Mike walked into Biology, expecting a quiet lesson with a Christmas themed word search. What he didn't expect with to see was a puffy-eyed Jenny walk in looking like someone had died.

She avoided everyone's eyes – especially Trevor's – as she sat down. Mike wanted to ask her what was wrong but the teacher decided to pick that moment to tell them all that they still needed to focus on work before launching into an explanation of the nervous system. Mike let her get on to the differences between motor, sensory and relay neurones before pushing his book towards Jenny and scribbling a quick note.

_Are you okay? What's wrong?_

_ He didn't tell you?_

_ Trevor? No_

_ We broke up_

_ Why? :(_

_ Don't know_

_ Are you alright?_

_ Not really_

_ Want me to talk to him?_

_ No_

_ Are you mad at me?_

_ No_

_ You sure?_

_ Sure, sorry :)_

As soon as they got out of class, Mike grabbed hold of Trevor's wrist. He'd left straight away, obviously trying to get away.

"What the fuck, man?" he asked.

"What?" Trevor asked, as if he didn't have a clue what he could be talking about.

"Don't act dumb. Jenny. Why?"

"Look, it's no big deal, okay? Why are you on her side?"

"What? Did you see her? Just tell me why you did it."

"Am I not allowed to want to break up with someone? We weren't even together that long."

People were starting to look at them now, they were standing in the middle of the hallway, shouting at each other. The bell rang, they had to go.

"Couldn't you have at least done it nicely?" Mike asked quickly. He knew Trevor wasn't going to be worried about the time.

"I tried. Really, I did. I told her I just didn't want to do it any more, like I was in some stupid film but then she got all clingy and weird so I just left."

Mike didn't know what else he could say. He needed to get to class and he knew that if Trevor didn't want to tell him something, he wasn't going to be able to get it out of him in a few seconds.

Trevor sat down at his desk. History was not his greatest subject and he didn't even get to see Mike in it. Then again, considering the fact that he was obviously going to keep asking him about Jenny, maybe that wasn't a bad thing.

He didn't know what to say about breaking up with her. He didn't really know why he'd done it to himself. Even if he had a bit of an issue with their relationship, ending it now rather than later just wasn't like him. There were obvious... benefits to being with her and now Mike was mad at him and he wasn't going to be getting a blow job any time soon. Fantastic.

He waited by the front gate for Mike after school. He expected more questions about Jenny but instead, Mike looked vaguely surprised.

"Guess what?" Mike asked.

"Er, what?"

"I have a date."

"What? With who?"

"Nicole, she was at the party."

"The one between us in spin the bottle?"

"Yeah... she just asked me."

"Oh, cool. Okay."

"Really? That's all? I was expecting some kind of pep talk or something."

"Sorry, man," Trevor replied. "Not really feeling it. Just ended my relationship, remember?"

Yeah, that was how little Trevor wanted to talk about Mike's date. He was willing to bring Jenny to get out of it. Mike reacted exactly how he'd expected. He offered him a sympathetic smile and asked him if he wanted to talk about it.

Mike had been pretty surprised when Nicole had asked him out. He'd been on his way out of school when she'd cornered him by his locker and asked him if he remembered her. She was a year older than him, so he'd never had any classes with her. It had taken him a second or two to place her face but he'd nodded anyway and then she'd asked him if he was doing anything at the weekend.

He wasn't exactly attracted to her but she wasn't bad. She was probably quite pretty but Mike didn't think he was the best person to judge. Still though, a date was a date and he doubted that Trevor would be single for long this time.

By Friday, he was pretty nervous. At lunch, Trevor asked him if he wanted to come back to his and, yeah, he really did. That wasn't normal, was it? Wanting to call off a date so you could go re watch a film or play some video games? He just didn't really know what to do. It was pretty much going to be an experiment, anyway and he felt bad about that. He didn't want to feel like he was using her, he wasn't that guy.

"I can't, can I? I'm going out with Nicole tonight."

Trevor just rolled his eyes.

"Oh, right. That."

"How about tomorrow?" Mike asked.

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe I wont be free. Maybe I'll be out with some girl I've never even talked to," Trevor replied.

"What? Do you have some issue with Nicole?"

"Issue? Oh, I don't know. Maybe I just don't like the idea of my best friend ditching me so he can go out with some slutty girl that he doesn't have anything in common with."

"Trevor, what the fuck?" Mike asked. "What, are you jealous or something?"

He was trying not to shout but Trevor just made it so difficult sometimes.

"Whatever, man," was all he got in response as Trevor walked away, leaving half of his food unfinished.

Trevor slid the stall lock shut and leant back against the door. Fuck, that had been out of order. He just... didn't like the idea of Mike being with anyone else. Sure, he didn't really seem to like the girl much, but that was only a small comfort. Tonight, he'd be in the cinema, probably doing everything but watching the film and Trevor just couldn't think about that.

He felt like an idiot, caring so much about what Mike was doing. It wasn't like he was going to be able to do anything with him, he wasn't even certain he wanted to or how he felt but he knew he didn't like the idea of him going out with that girl. Still, though, he shouldn't have taken it out on him like that.

It was six o'clock when Mike rounded the corner. She beamed at him as he walked towards her. She was pretty. He'd decided. Sort of. She wasn't not pretty, at least. He took a deep breath and reminded himself why he was here. He was an idiot. An idiot who couldn't say no. An idiot that might be crushing on his best friend a little. An idiot who needed to find out if he still liked girls.

Trevor was idly clicking around online when Mike logged into Skype. It was just gone 9, so his date couldn't have lasted any longer than it should have. Good. He waited for the familiar ping of Mike's message, but it never came. He wasn't going to make this easy for him, was he?

[9:01:47 PM] Trevor Evans: Hey man

[9:01:59 PM] Trevor Evans: Im sorry about today

[9:02:20 PM] Mike Ross: Are you?

[9:02:33 PM] Trevor Evans: Yeah. I was out of order

[9:02:56 PM] Mike Ross: Yeah, you were.

[9:03:15 PM] Trevor Evans: I know Im sorry

[9:03:19 PM] Trevor Evans: Really

[9:03:38 PM] Mike Ross: Why did you do it?

[9:03:52 PM] Trevor Evans: I dont know. Im a dick

[9:04:10 PM] Mike Ross: Well, I know that. Doesn't answer my question, though.

[9:04:17 PM] Trevor Evans: Haha thanks so much

[9:04:28 PM] Trevor Evans: I dont know sometimes Im just a dick when Im around you

[9:04:39 PM] Mike Ross: What?

[9:04:50 PM] Trevor Evans: I dont know. I guess I was jealous you were right

[9:04:55 PM] Trevor Evans: I didnt like that I had to stay at home without you

[9:05:02 PM] Mike Ross: Oh so you were jealous of her then?

[9:05:44 PM] Trevor Evans: What?

[9:05:56 PM] Mike Ross: Oh go on, admit it, you can't even go one night without me without flipping out. When were you thinking of making an honest man of me?

[9:06:12 PM] Trevor Evans: Hilarious you are killing me with your comedy here

[9:06:19 PM] Trevor Evans: How was the date anyway? See much of the film?

[9:06:26 PM] Mike Ross: Er, well no.

[9:06:39 PM] Mike Ross: It was kinda annoying actually. Every time it seemed to be getting good she insisted on kissing me.

[9:06:47 PM] Trevor Evans: Oh man you should have told her

[9:06:52 PM] Trevor Evans: Back off so I can watch the film

[9:07:08 PM] Mike Ross: We should go watch it together, I really didn't catch much of it.

[9:07:12 PM] Trevor Evans: Maybe

[9:07:17 PM] Trevor Evans: Dont think I wont be tempted to kiss you too though

[9:07:21 PM] Trevor Evans: Your lips are irresistable

[9:07:26 PM] Mike Ross: Oh, I know.

[9:07:31 PM] Mike Ross: I gotta go, Gram wants to hear about it.

[9:07:36 PM] Trevor Evans: K good luck

Trevor didn't know why he always joked about it. It didn't make it any easier. He really did think Mike's lips were irresistable.

That night, when Mike got into bed, he tried to process everything. The kisses? They'd been fine, but only fine. He hadn't been joking about them interrupting the film. That was fine though, right? So what if he really, really wanted to kiss Trevor again and not some random girl? Maybe he just wasn't that into her. Or maybe he liked Trevor more than he'd previously admitted to himself and he just didn't want anyone else.

Saturday was cold and Mike didn't want to get out of bed. When he finally did and turned his laptop on, the first thing he noticed was that Trevor wasn't online. That was weird. Trevor's near constant online prescence was legendary. Then again, it was before noon on a weekend, so he probably wasn't up yet. When he didn't come on all day, though, Mike couldn't help worrying a little.

Trevor wanted to call Mike but he thought it was probably a good idea to have some time apart. He didn't want to have another stupid outburst again. It was just weird not seeing him. He opened Skype and saw that he was online but he kept his status at invisible. Mike text him and asked if he was okay. He text back, saying he was ill and was just going to go back to sleep. It was a lie but he thought he should try to get his head straight before he saw him again.

Monday was cold and everyone seemed a little subdued. Trevor seemed to have recovered from whatever mystery illness he'd contracted over the weekend, though. They only had two days left until Christmas break and the two of them walked to school together, complaining about how it wasn't fair that they hadn't just finished on Friday.

The teachers seemed to feel the same way and had given up on teaching them anything new. In Biology, the teacher turned off the lights and wheeled in a large tv. Most of the class moved around quickly when they realised that they'd be watching a film. Luckily, Jenny had a friend that say at the front of the class and she moved immediately to go and sit with her.

Mike was relieved. Jenny had stopped scowling at the two of them but Trevor had no tact. Mike wouldn't have put it past him to drag a chair over and join them if she had stayed.

"What are you planning on doing after we finish tomorrow?" Trevor asked after turning Jenny's chair around and sitting down on it backwards.

Even Mike thought he looked like an idiot, but he always did it.

"Your parents aren't away again, are they?"

"No, just working late. They said you could stay over if you want."

Mike thought about it for a second. He knew that sleeping over at Trevor's would confuse him further but there was no way he could so no, not when Trevor was grinning at him like that.

"Sounds good."

The next day, everyone was excited. The last day of term was always like this, especially when it was the last day before Christmas break. Some of the girls had brought in mistletoe and had taken to standing under it in the hallways, prompting a few reminders from the teachers to not eat the berries.

Mike shook his head quickly at Trevor during one of these reminders. He wouldn't put it past him.

At lunch, Nicole came up to him nervously and sat down. Trevor, for once, didn't say anything and he was thankful for that.

"Hi," she said.

"Er... hi."

"I was wondering... do you maybe want to do something over the break?"

Think fast, think fast.

"I can't. I have a lot of family stuff to sort out," he lied. "Sorry."

"Oh. Um, okay. You'll be busy all break?"

"Probably. My Gram usually gets ill when it's cold and we'll have a lot of visitors," Mike said quickly. Trevor had taught him that oversharing was always good to get out of a conversation.

Nicole nodded before leaving. She looked disappointed.

"What was that about, your Gram is fine, isn't she?" Trevor asked once she was out of earshot.

Maybe Mike should start giving him more credit.

"Yeah, she's fine."

"And family? Suddenly have aunts and uncles popping out of the woodwork?"

"No, I just didn't want to see her again, alright?"

"What? Why not?"

"I don't know, it was just awkward last time and I don't want to have to bother with it again. I'm not really into her."

Trevor shrugged it off. Good. Mike didn't know if it was because he wasn't too bothered or if he knew Mike didn't want to talk about it,but he was grateful either way.

They stopped for a burger on the way back to Trevor's. They were planning on playing some games for quite a few hours straight and they wouldn't be stopping for food.

When they got back to the basement, it was freezing. Trevor would have sworn that it was colder down there than it was outside so he ran upstairs to grab the duvet off of the double bed in the guest room.

When he got back downstairs, Mike had already dragged the beanbag into position and was waiting for him on it.

"You still cold?" Trevor asked as he heaved the duvet over his shoulder when he walked down the stairs.

"Yeah, hurry up and come here," Mike replied.

Trevor sat on the edge of the beanbag and slid slowly down until he was comfortable, trying to ignore the warmth of Mike against him. He pulled the duvet over them both and just looked up at the ceiling as Mike turned over and snuggled into him.

Mike almost wished they were going to get high again tonight but he knew he shouldn't encourage it – they did that way too often. If they did, though, he might have been able to get away with touching Trevor a bit more. He used the low temperature of the room as an excuse to get close, slipping his head onto his shoulder.

He knew he shouldn't. Trevor was his oldest friend, he shouldn't compromise that but... it wasn't as if he was trying for anything more. He just wanted to be close to him.

"Can we just stay like this for a bit so I can warm up?" he asked.

Trevor smirked and nodded, tightening the duvet around them. As Mike lay there with him, he couldn't help but think that this was all he needed. He was warm and comfortable and wrapped up with his favourite person in the world. He let himself enjoy it, just for a second, without feeling guilty. He was happy. He knew this couldn't go any further but he wasn't sure he wanted it to. So what if he saw his friendship as a little more than that, now? He could have that, without it bothering anyone. If that was all he could have from Trevor, it would have to do.


	4. Chapter 4

Trevor woke up with Mike still on his shoulder. He could hear his parents' voices from upstairs, which meant it must have been after six. They'd slept for at least a few hours. He didn't want to wake Mike, not yet. He watched him sleep, his hair sticking up, his cheeks a little flushed and he was overwhelmed with an urge to kiss him. Just then, though, Mike's eyelids started to flutter open.

It wasn't like he would have done it, anyway.

"My parents are back. I think we fell asleep for a few hours," he said.

"Oh fuck, sorry," Mike replied, rubbing sleep out of his eyes.

"No, it's alright. Are you tired?"

"Not really, I was just warm and stuff."

A voice called down from upstairs, asking if they'd eaten or if they needed food. Trevor shouted up to tell his mother they were fine. He was starting to get a little hungry and he thought that maybe Mike was too but he had snacks in the cupboard and cold pizza in his mini fridge and that was usually good enough for them. He really didn't want to have to move.

Mike really loved days when they could just do nothing. He loved that they could just get so comfortable that they fell asleep and neither of them thought that it was strange.

"Ugh, my shoulder hurts," Trevor said suddenly.

"Sorry, you want me to move?" Mike asked, trying to sit up.

"No, it's cool, just..." Trevor shifted and pulled his arm up from under Mike's head and slipped it around his shoulder. Mike smiled and turned into him.

Sometimes, he couldn't believe Trvor let him do things like this. He really wanted to slip his arm across him, to make this a proper hug, not just something to make them more comfortable, but he didn't want to make Trevor feel awkward.

Trevor shifted a little and picked up the remote control. Mike hadn't realised until then that they'd just been sitting together in the dark. He flipped through the channels, passing three or four documentaries (neither of them really enjoyed things like that; Trevor got bored and Mike had usually read about the subject before) until he landed on an old episode of _House_ that Mike knew they'd both seen together at least once.

They watched it anyway.

Mike regretted it pretty soon. The patient had something wrong with their eye, so of course that meant he had to be subjected to a close up of a needle going straight through their pupil. Mike didn't consider himself to be particularly squeamish but needles and eyes? No. That was just wrong.

He thought he was going to be able to take it, watching right up to the point where the needle pierced the cornea but then he buried his head in Trevor's shirt. He heard (and felt) him chuckle softly.

"Oh man, you are such a baby."

"What? It's a _needle_ in an _eyeball, _Trevor."

Mike didn't want to turn back. He knew the scene was over but he was warm and he could feel Trevor breathing beneath him. After a few seconds, he forced himself to look back up but it had been a mistake. He'd waited too long and somehow, there was blood everywhere. Great. He really shouldn't watch House. He hated hospitals.

This time, Trevor didn't laugh when he flung his arm across his chest. It was a complete accident. Trevor squeezed him tightly and Mike looked up to see him smiling.

If anyone understood his problem with hospitals, it was Trevor.

Trevor took a deep breath. He had Mike's arm wrapped around him and he just wanted to pull him onto his lap and kiss him. He wanted to just stay like this. He reached down and passed the remote control to Mike so he could put something else on.

He spent the next hour trying to forget about the fact that Mike seemed to be fine watching the tv with his head on his shoulder.

"Do you want to do anything tomorrow?" Mike asked suddenly.

"Like what?"

"I don't know, I was just wondering if I was going to have to leave in the morning or not."

"Nope, my parents still have work, so I was thinking we could just hang out, we'll have the house to ourselves."

"Good, we haven't in ages. I was thinking we could have a marathon or something."

Trevor grinned. They hadn't had time for that since summer when they'd watched every underdog sports movie they could lay their hands on.

"I think you read my mind."

Two episodes of Mythbusters later and Mike was still cuddled up to him and Trevor was still trying to resist running his fingers through his hair.

"You got any food down here?" Mike asked.

"There's chips and stuff in the cupboard and some pizza in the fridge."

"Pepperoni?"

"Meat Feast. Ugh, we should probably stop living off pizza, right?"

"We're not," Mike said as he pushed himself off of the beanbag and walked to the fridge. "We had burgers earlier."

Mike passed him a bottle of coke from the fridge before he'd even had to ask and sat down again with the half empty pizza box on his lap. They split the remaining six slices.

"Any ideas what we can watch tomorrow? I might have some things at home if you want me to run back at sometime," Mike said.

"I'm sure I've got something."

"Make sure it's shitty."

"Of course."

They spent the next day watching every bad movie they had ever bought from the bargain bins on a whim. The morning after, Mike went back to his to get more clothes and check on his grandmother (the only reason, really, he could have borrowed clothes from Trevor if he needed them) and was due back any minute.

Trevor was taking the opportunity to spend some extra time in the shower. Thanks to the combination of not jerking off for two nights and spending those nights with Mike pressed up against him, he was more than just a little frustrated. He had one hand bracing himself against the bathroom wall and the other wrapped around his cock.

He'd given Mike the spare key, so he wouldn't have to worry about him ringing the doorbell any second but Mike had a habit of sitting outside the bathroom door and talking to him if he couldn't find anything to do. Trevor didn't think he'd react well to the sounds he'd probably make if he tried to talk right now.

That morning, he'd woken up to Mike's arms wrapped around him, one of his hands resting precariously on his lower abdomen. He'd spent five minutes prying himself free without waking him up so he could get his erection to go away.

He let himself think about it, now that he could. He remembered the way Mike's head had been resting on his chest and how the loose tshirt he'd given him to sleep in revealed quite a lot of skin. Not that he hadn't seen Mike shirtless before, they'd changed in front of each other enough but it was different. He hadn't even been able to think about the fact that Mike's legs were bare against his, both of them only in their underwear. He thought about it now, how he'd wanted to run his hands over him, to trace the lines of his hips down to his cock and... fuck, he had it bad.

He knew he needed to stop this but he couldn't. He didn't know how. It wasn't like he could stop seeing Mike, he was his best friend. He just didn't know how to stop wanting him so much. It had come out of nowhere and now it was all he could think about. He almost came as he started to wonder if Mike would be good at giving head. He didn't see why not, he seemed to be able to pick everything else up just fine.

He sped up his strokes, imagining what Mike would look like with his lips wrapped around his cock. He slumped against the wall as he came, wincing at the cold of the tiles. He really hoped he hadn't just groaned Mike's name too loudly.

He wrapped a towel around his waist and shook some of the water out of his hair. When he walked into his bedroom to grab some clothes, he wasn't that surprised to see Mike sitting on his bed, but he suddenly felt really underdressed.

Mike didn't stare at Trevor, he looked at everything else. He was only wearing a towel and it was wrapped low around his hips. He asked him if he'd brought anything good with him from home and Mike just motioned to bag where his laptop was visibly sticking out. He had a few emulators on there, countless tv shows and movies, he was sure they'd be able to find something. Mike kept his eyes trained on the floor as Trevor pulled some clothes out of his drawers. He tried not to think about how that towel was the only thing stopping him from being completely naked.

Just for a second, when he was sure Trevor wouldn't see, he let his eyes flick up and then he couldn't tear his eyes away from his back. Trevor's skin was pale, with freckles running over his shoulderblades, down the curve of his lower back and disappearing under that fucking towel. Mike looked away quickly when he turned around and tried to remember how to breathe.

Trevor grinned at him before going back to the bathroom and Mike took the opportunity to do everything he could to get rid of his erection. Trevor seemed oddly calm considering they hadn't been smoking yet. Had he gotten high without him? No, no, Mike was pretty sure he'd have been able to smell it.

Once he was dressed, they made their way back down to the basement. This place had been like a second home to Mike; he'd spent more time here than anywhere else, really. Trevor grabbed his laptop bag and unzipped it, turning it on and not even pausing at the password screen. It was probably a bad thing, seeing as nobody else would even bother trying to get onto his laptop, but they'd always known each other's passwords.

"Dude, have you still got all of the Indiana Jones movies on here?" Trevor asked. They were always something to fall back on.

"Yeah, there's a movie folder on the desktop, should be in there somewhere," Mike replied."Are we out of soda?"

"Shit, I think so. Should be some in the fridge upstairs."

Mike got up carefully; getting out of a beanbag was an artform. He ran upstairs as quickly as he could and found a few bottles in the fridge and brought them back down with him. They looked through the files on his laptop once he was back downstairs and found some things to watch. Twenty minutes in, Mike noticed that Trevor kept stealing glances at the cupboard. He sighed.

"I'm up for it," Mike said. "If you get up and get it, though, I'm comfortable."

Trevor sighed and mocked rolled his eyes before grinning and getting up. He sorted everything, as usual, something that Mike was always grateful for. The few times he'd tried getting high without him... hadn't gone too well.

"Do you want to move to the couch?"

Ugh, he didn't. He was comfortable but... the idea of them trying to balance the laptop whilst being high on the beanbag? The hinges had a hairline crack from the last time they'd attempted it. Mike nodded and pulled himself up, moving everything on to the small table opposite the couch. It was pretty comfortable on the couch, but they still never really used it.

He watched Trevor light up and take a long drag before he passed it to him. Sometimes he worried that they smoked a little too often but it wasn't a big deal. It was fun and for once his brain didn't seem to be running a thousand miles per hour. It's not like he had to pay for it, either. It was an agreement they'd settled on a while after they'd started getting high together. At first, they'd taken turns, but sometimes Mike couldn't afford it and Trevor hadn't wanted to wait. In the end, he'd said that the weed wasn't as good without him so he'd buy it for himself as long as he had Mike to smoke it with and he wouldn't take no for an answer.

Mike felt his body untense as he felt the weed work through him. The film was over before he knew it and Trevor was already rolling another joint. Mike was half hard in his jeans, maybe he'd learned to associate the heady feeling and the smell that surrounded them with times when he could get away with being a little too physical with Trevor. Or maybe he'd just learned to associate it all with Trevor himself. Mike watched as he lit up again and closed his lips around it, taking a deep drag. His eyes looked heavy and he had that dopey smile Mike was so accustomed to seeing.

The question that had been on Mike's mind for a while now surfaced again. He knew from experience that this was probably his best chance for a straight answer.

"Trev?"

"Mmm?"

"About Jenny... Are you okay about everything?"

"Yeah, of course, man."

"You sure? I thought you liked her."

"I just didn't want a relationship, okay? It started to get serious and I didn't like it."

"You don't miss her?"

"I miss some of the stuff we did," Trevor said with a grin.

Mike didn't know what to say. He didn't really want to think about them together.

"It was pretty hard to end it with her, man. I was pretty sure I was going to get a blow job if I stuck around a few days longer."

"Alright, Trevor, fuck. Don't wanna know."

"What? You're suddenly a prude?"

Obviously, they'd spoken about sex, before. Usually when they were high or when Trevor had decided to send him some really weird porn but Mike had never been the one to start any of it. Trevor was the king of oversharing so Mike wasn't sure what he meant.

"Well no, but what? You say that like until now you've thought I was the complete opposite."

"Nah, I just looked at your internet history when you went upstairs earlier."

Fuck. Mike tried to think back to what he might have seen. He thought back to the last thing he'd watched and winced. He knew he shouldn't be embarrassed, it was Trevor, they knew (almost) everything about each other but... that last one..

Trevor grinned, the look of panic on Mike's face was kind of funny.

"Chill, it's just porn. I'm sure it's all pretty vanilla," he said.

He reached out and picked up the laptop, throwing his legs over Mike to stop him from wrestling it out of his hands as he pulled up his internet history.

"Please tell me you're not thinking of watching porn with me," Mike said.

Trevor clicked on the first entry on the list that looked promising. He knew that he'd probably regret this later; it was a bad idea, he knew it was but he couldn't stop himself. He couldn't help being really curious about what Mike liked and the thought that he was about to see something that Mike had probably jerked off to was pretty hot.

Mike wanted the ground to open up and swallow him. Trevor had put the laptop back on the table and now an amateur video was buffering.

"Come on man, it's not a big deal. I'm just curious, I'll keep it in my pants, don't worry," Trevor said.

The video started to play. It was on a free website, so it was just a ten minute clip that started halfway through. There was a blonde girl straddling a guy's lap on a couch, kissing him whilst she removed her bra. The guy had dark hair, a fair complexion and a strong jawline. He had a few freckles running down his neck. He looked a lot like Trevor.

Mike looked away. Trevor could look at the porn if he wanted to, he didn't care, not really, but he didn't want him to see him watching it, too. He took the joint when it was passed to him, taking a bigger hit than he should have. He chanced a glance at Trevor; his eyes were glued to the screen. The woman had slid off the man's lap now and was, as Mike knew, about to suck him off.

Trevor felt pretty spaced out. He couldn't believe they were doing this. Mike was looking away from the screen and he felt a little bad that he might be making him feel awkward.

"Shall I turn it off?" he asked.

Mike just grinned lazily before stubbing out the end of the joint in the ashtray. Trevor moved his legs off of his lap and Mike seemed to relax.

"No. It's just porn, it's cool."

The girl on the screen was running her tongue along the guy's cock and Trevor couldn't help staring. She was pretty, he could tell, but he wasn't actually attracted to her. He wasn't attracted to the guy either; he wondered if he was attracted to anyone other than Mike right now. That aside, the high created a pleasant thrum underneath his skin and he couldn't help imagining Mike's lips around his cock. He shifted his position, making sure his erection was well hidden and keeping his distance from Mike. They were close, but he was pretty sure physical contact would be a deal breaker right now.

Talking about sex was one thing but being right next to each other was understandably awkward. Trevor would have been fine if Mike didn't look so good sitting there, his teeth worrying at his bottom lip. Trevor wanted to reach other and pull him towards him.

Mike looked at the screen, keeping his eyes on anything but Trevor. He'd just shifted his position and Mike was pretty sure he knew why. Fuck, he wished he could see. He was pretty sure Trevor had spaced out or was completely taken with the blonde on the screen; he took the chance to palm himself through his jeans, hoping it would relieve his urges or at least distract him from his sudden jealousy. It did neither.

He heard Trevor's breath shake a little and he felt his pulse quicken. He looked at him out of the corner of his eye, watched as his hand dropped to his lap. There wasn't much movement, just the occasional twitch of his arm, a tiny glimpse of tongue darting out to wet his lips. Mike stared at the way his jaw clenched a little. His eyes were dark, looking almost confused – his eyes... shit, Trevor was looking at him. His eyes dropped to his lap and lingered and Mike knew that his erection was probably pretty visible, even in the low light. This could not look good. Mike reacted the only way he knew how.

"Man, I've got a headache, I'm going to head back home. You know Gram doesn't like it when I stay over here for too long, anyway," he said. He scrambled up quickly, his heart hammering in his chest. He left his laptop, too eager to leave. Trevor just looked at him in confusion, maybe anger, but he didn't say anything.

Mike had moved faster than he had ever seen. Why had he done something so fucking stupid? He'd felt Mike watching him, he knew he was probably too uncomfortable to say anything. He'd just been about to ask him if he'd wanted him to turn the stupid video off again when he'd been the biggest goddamn idiot. He hadn't been able to stop his eyes dropping to his crotch, staring at the way the denim clung deliciously to his cock. Then Mike has scarpered without even taking his laptop.

Once Mike had climbed through his bedroom window (Grammy would be able to smell the pot on him, no problem) he threw himself down on the bed. That was not good, not at all. He'd been practically leering at Trevor and he'd seen and he hoped beyond hope that he would be able to get him to forget about it. He'd been high but Mike knew that it wasn't too hard to shake the haze away. Mike barely felt like he'd been smoking at all tonight, not now. All he could feel was the worry unfurling in his stomach and the insistent throb of his cock as he remembered how good Trevor had looked in that fucking towel.

He'd been ignoring it as much as he could for a while now. Well, if ignoring was jerking off to porn with actors that looked a lot like Trevor, but still, he'd never outright thought about him when he was alone. Not like that. At that moment, though, Mike couldn't help but think about running his tongue over his hipbones, pressing his fingers into his shoulders and feeling how they ran into the dip of his back...

Before long, Mike had his hand in his jeans and he was biting one of his knuckles to keep himself from moaning. He wished he was back in the basement, warm under the duvet, pressed together with Trevor on the beanbag. Mike scrambled to pull his jeans down so he wouldn't end up coming in them. It was quick, frantic but he couldn't help it after everything. He didn't want to think too much about the name that slipped past his lips as he came.


	5. Chapter 5

Trevor stared at his Skype contacts. He hadn't spoken to Mike in three days and it had taken him two to realise that it was probably because he still had his laptop. He'd taken it round last night, around the time he knew Mike took a shower. His grandmother had said she'd give it to him but she'd looked slightly suspicious. It had been a whole day since then and Mike hadn't been online once.

Two more days passed before Trevor really began to worry. Mike hadn't messaged him at all but Trevor couldn't bring himself to do it, either. He didn't know what he should say. _Oh hey man, sorry I was staring at your cock the other day._  
>He was kind of glad for once that his house was full of visiting family for the holidays. They were a good distraction – although he couldn't help but feel a little sad that Mike probably didn't have any visitors. He used to joke that he'd swap any time but he knew the holidays could be really hard for him. Christmas Eve came without a word from Mike and Trevor waited until he knew he was showering again to drop his present off. He'd bought it a few weeks before and he waited for Mike's grandmother to answer the door.<p>

"Trevor. Good evening."

"Hi, Mrs. Ross," he said.

"Mike's showering, it's a little late."

"Oh, I know, I'm sorry," he said, making sure he looked as apologetic as possible. "I just wanted to drop this over. Could you give it to him for me? Tomorrow, I mean."

He handed her the box; it contained some soda that Mike had really liked before it had gotten discontinued. It had taken a while to find it online but Trevor hoped it would make up for what had happened.

"Of course. Have you two fallen out?"

"I... don't know." It was all he could think to say. "Have a good day tomorrow."

Christmas Day was weird. There were presents and there was food and it should have been fun but Trevor couldn't think about anything but Mike. He hadn't text him yet, or made any attempt to contact him. No "Merry Christmas", no comment on the present, nothing.

After some of his relatives had arrived, around 3pm, Trevor gave up putting his hone away every time he checked it and just let it rest on his knee. Ten minutes later, he got the message he'd been waiting for:

Mike: Man, THANK YOU! Merry Christmas!

Trevor: I thought you didn't like it or something

Mike: No, only just opened it. We do presents after food. Plus, I had something to do. Check basement. You should probably start locking those windows btw

Trevor grinned and excused himself. He ran down to the basement and saw a large box next to the beanbag with a note attached: _Merry Xmas dude, for your eyes only_

He opened the box quickly and smiled instantly. There were snacks (all of his favourites), a few bottles of beer, some bags of weed and a flash drive. He pulled his phone out again.

Trevor: This is amazing. Thanks! Not sure if I'll be able to enjoy it properly on my own, though.

Mike: Duh. I did think we could use it together. Maybe tomorrow?

Trevor: So basically you're giving me you for christmas?

Mike: You don't want me? So ungrateful :(

Trevor: 12 oclock? Parents are going to see family.

Mike: Yeah, I'll be there. We need to catch up.

Trevor: Agreed. Gotta get back upstairs. See you soon.

He would have signed it with a kiss as a joke but considering the circumstances, he thought that might be a bad idea. He picked up the box and locked it away where he usually kept things he needed to hide. Mike hadn't mentioned anything – it was as if nothing had happened. He could work with that.

Mike said goodbye to his Grammy and left his house at half eleven. He'd get there a little early, even if he walked slowly but he'd been waiting all morning. He was sort of nervous, he hadn't wanted to contact Trevor before but as soon as he'd seen his present, he'd known they were okay. Trevor hadn't brought up what had happened on the phone and Mike wasn't going to if he didn't.

The two of them didn't actually drink very often because, funnily enough, it was easier and cheaper to get hold of weed. Sometimes they did, though. Mike always felt a little bit better about it when they did, as if, because alcohol was more socially acceptable, it didn't seem like they had a problem. Not that they did, not really, it just seemed a little weird when Mike realised that they spent more time together high than not.

Mike wondered if he'd smoke as much if he didn't have a crush on Trevor. By the time he got to his house, he was mad at himself for acting like it was nothing, like it was just a crush. It wasn't. It wasn't something entirely separate from their friendship and he was happy for everything to stay how it was, he just wished he could let Trevor know how much he meant to him.

That and he was really fucking attracted to him suddenly but that wasn't the point.

The point was that Trevor had just opened the door and he was grinning like he always did and it was like nothing bad had happened at all. Okay, so when they sat down on the beanbag, they didn't slip together like they usually did, but at least Trevor hadn't gone straight for the couch.

They had a beer each whilst discussing how their Christmasses had been and it suddenly hit Mike that this was the longest that they'd ever gone without seeing each other.

Trevor listened to Mike tell him about how he'd managed to beat his Grammy at chess twice, which was apparently quite an achievement. He tried to keep his mind off of anything out of bounds (like how warm Mike's leg felt against his own) as Mike told him about his new bike. Trevor had made the decision that they weren't going to get high again. He was being sensible for once in his life. He didn't need a repeat of last time.

"Did you look on the flash drive yet?" Mike asked.

"Yeah! Fuck, it's amazing, man."

In the excitement of having Mike back, he'd completely forgotten. The flash drive had every episode of Battlestar Galactica. They'd been talking about marathoning it for ages now.

"Want to watch some today?"

Three episodes of Battlestar Galactica and two bottles of beer later and Mike was beginning to feel that familiar haze. It wasn't anything to do with them getting high or drunk, he knew that. It was because, even if they weren't talking, Mike knew that they could. He didn't like to think about it but there had been times when it had all been too much: his parents' deaths, caring for his Grandmother, his freakish brain... and Trevor had been there for him. Mike knew that if he ever told anyone, Trevor would deny everything but if anything, that made it even better.

Trevor wasn't the kind of person that wanted to know everyone's business and he was too lazy to help people just to make himself feel like a hero. Despite all that, he still helped Mike whenever he could. That was why Mike needed to address this.

"About the other day..." he said quickly.

"I don't really know what happened, okay? I was high," Trevor said.

"I'm sorry for walking out like that."

"No, man, I get it. It was awkward."

Trevor didn't understand. Why was Mike apologising?

"I missed you, man. I really thought I'd fucked it up badly," he said.

"Don't be an idiot. It's _us_."

"Yeah, I know, but I didn't hear from you so I thought... I don't know."

"Why didn't you contact me, then?" Mike asked.

"I... don't know."

There was something about the way Trevor was looking at him. He looked serious. Maybe it was because he so rarely did but when he looked serious, it made Mike's heart flip. He wanted to kiss him, to make everything okay again. There was only a second before he broke into a grin.

"Whatever, man, it's cool."

Once Mike had left after six whole episodes and a few deliberations over whether or not to get high, he sat in his room, staring at his Skype contacts. It was seven pm and Trevor knew that Jenny didn't work tonight. Not that she'd been visibly online to him since they'd broken up. He wanted to explain himself, at least lie enough to make her feel better. If just for Mike, he knew that it had been getting to him that they didn't really speak in class any more. Trevor still had her number. He send her a quick text:

Trevor: Can you unblock me on Skype? Want to talk – need to explain.

Trevor wasn't sure if he expected her to do it, not straight away at least, so he was surprised when she came online.

[7:07:37 PM] Jenny Griffith: What is it?

[7:07:44 PM] Trevor Evans: Can we talk?

[7:08:02 PM] Jenny Griffith: I guess, what is it?

[7:08:11 PM] Trevor Evans: Im sorry

[7:08:15 PM] Jenny Griffith: For what?

[7:08:24 PM] Trevor Evans: For not giving you a reason and being a dick

[7:08:37 PM] Jenny Griffith: You're always a dick. I'm over it now.

[7:08:50 PM] Trevor Evans: Then why do you still seem mad at Mike? It's not his fault

[7:08:59 PM] Jenny Griffith: I'm not mad at Mike

[7:09:15 PM] Jenny Griffith: So are you going to give me a reason?

[7:09:21 PM] Trevor Evans: I cant

[7:09:25 PM] Jenny Griffith: What?

[7:09:30 PM] Jenny Griffith: Why not?

[7:09:46 PM] Trevor Evans: Dont want to lie to you and I cant tell you the actual reason. Im just sorry okay?

[7:09:57 PM] Jenny Griffith: Fine. Well thanks for nothing.

[7:10:05 PM] Trevor Evans: Its personal

[7:10:10 PM] Jenny Griffith: I'd expect so. What is it, do you like someone else?

Trevor thought about it. He thought about why he'd asked Jenny out in the first place. She was nice enough and he knew if he was going to be attracted to anyone that wasn't Mike, it would be her. She was sort of a test. That and she was obviously into Mike. He'd asked her out to make sure she stopped flirting with him. He knew it was stupid. He couldn't do this to every woman that ever showed interest in Mike. That wouldn't be fair on him or them but he just couldn't stand to think of Mike with anyone else.

[7:10:36 PM] Trevor Evans: Maybe? I dont know

[7:10:44 PM] Jenny Griffith: Tell me. You owe me that much.

[7:10:54 PM] Trevor Evans: No I don't. Not that much.

[7:10:58 PM] Trevor Evans: Sorry.

Trevor wished he could tell someone. He sort of wished he could tell Jenny in the hopes that it might stop her trying to flirt with Mike in the future. Then again, Trevor was pretty sure that show wouldn't, on principal. It didn't look very good to go through friends like that.

[7:11:08 PM] Jenny Griffith: It's that big of a deal? Are you okay?

[7:11:13 PM] Trevor Evans: Im fine

Jenny was too nice for her own good. He did like her, though. They'd grown pretty close in the time they'd spent together. If it hadn't been for the breakup and the nature of his secret, he probably would have trusted her with it.

[7:11:36 PM] Jenny Griffith: Okay, well if you need anyone to talk to about it, I'm here.

The first day back to school was depressing. Everyone had gotten used to staying up late and by second period, the excitement of seeing friends again had worn off. Jenny smiled at him when she sat down and Mike raised his head a little to acknowledge her.

"You look tired," she said.

"Thanks."

"No, I mean -"

"It's cool, I am."

Just then, Trevor walked in, somehow looking fine. He was used to sleep deprivation; Mike would bet that he hadn't had a proper sleeping pattern in years. He grinned at Mike before shifting his eyes to Jenny momentarily. For once she didn't scowl. She didn't smile, but it was close.

"Good Christmas?" he asked.

"Yeah, it was fun."

It was definitely a lot more friendly than the last time he'd seen her. Had Trevor sorted things out with her?

Mike was in the library, studying. He did that sometimes, saying that if he didn't read it, he couldn't remember it. Trevor knew that he was just worrying when he didn't need to. It was cute, but nothing could get Trevor into the library. He didn't mind eating alone.

"Can I sit down?" It was Jenny.

"Uh, sure."

"Are you actually okay?"

She was pulling that face, the one she always pulled when she thought that she knew something. She usually did.

"Why do you even care?" he asked. It came out harsher than he'd meant it to.

"Oh, sorry, I'll just leave then, shall I?"

"No – wait. I didn't mean it like that. I just... I was a dick, why do you care how I am?"

"I guess I can't help it. You have some mystery crush and apparently it's important."

"It's not a crush."

"My point exactly."

"I'm fine."

"Are you going to tell him?"

Trevor's stomach lurched. What?

"Jenny, I don't know what you're thinking but..."

"I'm not stupid. If it's more than a crush, enough that you need to defend it, you obviously know them," she said.

"Seriously are you saying I'm gay?"

"Tell me it isn't him."

"Jenny..."

"Go on, tell me. I dare you. Tell me, say it like you mean it. Convince me."

Trevor looked at her and steeled himself.

"It isn't Mike."

"See, I never mentioned Mike."

"What? You implied it."

"Why wont you just be honest with me? It's not like I'd care, I'm not judging you, I'm just trying to help."

He really wished he had someone to talk to about it. Besides, it looked like Jenny had already made up her mind. It seemed counterproductive to spend time convincing her that it wasn't Mike. He rolled his eyes at her and sighed, nodding.

"Okay. I wont tell anyone. I promise."

She was smiling, a warm genuine smile. Suddenly, Trevor was full of feelings for Jenny. Not those feelings, not the sorts of feelings he should have for her, but feelings nonetheless. She was nice even after everything.

"Thanks."

Lunch with Jenny had been strange. He'd explained everything to her. Well, almost. He'd explained how he felt about Mike. He'd told her how there was nobody else like him, how he thought he still liked girls but right now, he didn't like anyone but Mike. She didn't judge him, she barely even said a word until he'd gotten it all out. He'd be lying to himself if he said it hadn't helped.

When the bell had rung, she'd asked if there was anything she could do. There wasn't. What could anyone do? He appreciated it anyway.

Mike couldn't help thinking that somehow, they'd regressed. He'd kissed Trevor, then shotgunned with him and now? He'd gone the longest he ever had without seeing him and now they were just getting back to normal. Maybe he could try the shotgunning again, Trevor had been fine with that before. No. He was being stupid. He wouldn't ever be able to have more with him and he needed to stop kidding himself.

Still, he couldn't think about much else when he arrived at Trevor's on Friday night, armed with Doritos, ready to continue their Battlestar Gallatica marathon.

All of that was probably why Mike didn't object to Trevor cracking out the weed. By the time the second episode was over, Mike was high enough to seriously consider it, so he took the second joint and lit it.

"Already?" Trevor asked. He'd only just put out the last one.

"Wanna try something?"

"Like what?"

"Um... the thing we did before? It's supposed to hit you faster that way."

They weren't that high yet, they'd gone through all of the good stuff on New Year's and now they only had what Trevor liked to call _back up pot_. Trevor looked apprehensive but he nodded so Mike did the same as before. He took a deep hit, letting the smoke fill his lungs. Trevor had already turned towards him, his lips slightly parted. Mike lined up, resisting the overwhelming urge to kiss him and let himself exhale. He watched Trevor's eyes flutter closed and Mike waited, waiting for him to exhale. It was strange doing it like this. The burn of the smoke was missing as he breathed it in again and had been replaced by something else: a humid pull of a sensation that coiled tight in his stomach. Mike thought about it for a little too long, forgetting where he was and he forgot to breathe out, wanting to keep Trevor's breath in him. Trevor laughed when he started to cough and pant for air. He took a deep gulp of a breath that flooded his chest with icy, harsh feelings. He needed to go again. He passed the joint to Trevor with a weak "your turn" and watched, mouth slightly agape, as Trevor wrapped his lips around it.

He felt the throb of his pulse through him as he watched him, the way it quickened as Trevor grinned at him, the way it beat harder in his neck and chest, in his cock as it began to harden. Trevor leaned forwards and then the smoke ran through him. He tried not to focus on how close his lips were but they were right there. Then they weren't.

They were close, touching his. Not moving, just connecting the seal as the last dregs of smoke passed between them. Mike couldn't help it. He moved his lips, closed them against Trevor's and kissed him. It was only for a second because they both needed to breathe. A second to exhale and then he realised what he'd done and that Trevor was now staring at him in horror.

"Sorry," Mike said and he didn't know if it was the weed or the almost-kiss but his brain wasn't working. Had Trevor just apologised at the same time?

"Why are _you _sorry?" Trevor asked, a frown passing across his face. "I kissed you."

"I moved my lips. You just put yours there," Mike replied, trying to urge his brain to work.

"I chickened out."

"Well I kissed you back, then."

Mike grabbed the joint and put it out and then kissed Trevor again.

Eventually, they'd look back on this as their first kiss (because spin the bottle shouldn't count, even if it did start everything). It was everything a first kiss tended to be: confused, slightly awkward and a little over passionate. It quickly melted into a second kiss that was a little better and once they'd repositioned for a third (Mike with his hips between Trevor's knees, lying flush against him)everything went much more smoothly.

Mike pushed the thoughts in his head down, the ones telling him needed to stop because Trevor didn't want this like he did, that he was only doing this because he was high. They were kissing and he would take whatever he could get.

Trevor felt the high he had drain out of him the moment he got a lap full of Mike Ross. Somehow this was happening and he started to hope that this wasn't another dream (because, yes, he'd had this dream but he couldn't remember ever questioning whether he was dreaming in a dream and this felt much too real) as Mike kissed him. He tasted like smoke and soda and _Mike_ and Trevor didn't want to stop. He wrapped his arms around his shoulders to hold him there, letting his fingers feel the way his shoulder blades were raised slightly as he held himself up.

He was briefly aware that he couldn't breathe and then Mike was pulling away, inhaling deeply. He saw a flash of blue eyes as Mike looked at him and for a second, he thought that it was all over. Trevor expected him to pull away, run home and never talk to him again, but he didn't. Mike kissed him again, running his tongue over his lips and Trevor couldn't help but wonder why he was doing it.

It wasn't like Mike to do something on a whim, but still, Trevor wouldn't accept that this was what he wanted. He just didn't get that lucky. He squashed his feelings of doubt down and focused on the feeling of Mike in his arms and the way his teeth were nipping at his lips.

Then his world turned upside down when Mike shifted in his lap, rolling his hips down and Trevor almost choked. The friction, Mike moving against the erection he'd had since Mike had suggested shotgunning again, it was almost too much. Another sensation ran up his spine and he groaned as he realised he could feel Mike's cock, just as hard as his own. He watched Mike's eyes flutter closed as he rolled his hips again, he felt the soft puff of air on his nose as Mike moaned softly. He wanted to do more than just sit there, to make Mike sound like that again but he didn't want to scare him off.

"Fuck, Trev," Mike groaned and, oh fuck, he wanted to hear that again.

"Mike," he breathed. "We should, uh..."

Trevor motioned to his jeans. He didn't expect much more than this but he was desperate for more direct contact. Mike fumbled with his own and Trevor undid his jeans, pushing them down over his hips. He looked for way too long at the way Mike's underwear tented out before he peeled them down too. Trevor followed suit, expecting, hoping for Mike to move back down, finish what they'd started. He was surprised when, instead, Mike reached down and grabbed his hand, bringing it up to close around both of their cocks. Trevor hissed, drawing in a deep breath between his teeth at the contact. He wanted to look everywhere, at the dopey grin on Mike's face, at their cocks pressed together in his hand... but then Mike was kissing him again, thrusting into his hand and all conscious thought was gone from his mind.

Mike had gone for it. As soon as Trevor had suggested that they eliminate their jeans from the equation, he had jumped at the chance to push it further. He might have pushed it too far but there would be time for regrets and apologies later. Trevor seemed to be going along with it and Mike couldn't focus. All there was was the friction of them thrusting along each other, his hand squeezing gently, holding them together. He was going to lose it annoyingly fast and he wanted to slow it down, to make this last longer but he couldn't. His hips seemed hell bent on driving his cock forwards into Trevor's fist.

Trevor didn't seem like he'd hold out much longer either, he was panting, rocking his hips in time with Mike's. Mike could feel his hand tightening slightly, each thrust slick now with precome.

"Mike... Fuck, I can't -" Trevor breathed, his words catching in his throat and Mike knew he only had seconds. He thrusted harder, leaning down to kiss Trevor, biting his lips like he'd seemed to like earlier. He felt him moan into the kiss, his fingers tightening around them as he came. The first spurt seemed to vibrate right through him, tipping him over the edge.

They stayed together like that for a while until they really had to do something about the mess. Trevor fished a box of tissues out of the cupboard (of course he'd have those down here). They both cleared up the best they could and Mike watched Trevor closely. He wasn't sure what he was supposed to do now. Trevor had been going along with everything when it meant getting off but he might be about to freak out. He just stretched and yawned.

"Mikey? I'm tired," he said.

Trevor was looking at the bed and Mike knew that it might be the only way to put off what had just happened. He really didn't want to have to leave yet. He followed Trevor over to the bed and got in after stripping down to his tshirt and underwear. They lay together in silence for a while and when Mike heard Trevor's breathing deepen, he turned over, letting his hand rest on top of his.

Trevor wanted to open his eyes, he needed to know if Mike was awake. He'd pretended to be alseep, worried that he might have to talk about what had happened. Then Mike had slid his hand down and resting on top of his own. Mike had to be asleep.


	6. Chapter 6

Trevor awoke with a start. Mike wasn't next to him in bed and for some reason that he couldn't place, that bothered him. He rolled over to the edge of the mattress and saw the note.

_Sorry about last night. Was high. See you later – M_

Fuck, of course Mike had run away. He hadn't wanted it, Trevor had been right and now he might have screwed up their friendship. Again.

Mike was standing under the shower, the hot water pounding his head and neck. What had he done? Sure, Trevor had gone through with it but Mike thought back and realised that he hadn't initiated anything. As soon as he'd woken up, Mike had left a note before leaving as fast as he could.

If Mike had been sure that Trevor wouldn't have woken up, he might have watched him for a little longer. Sometimes he spoke in his sleep, never about anything important but Mike had sat and listened to him for a while before. He knew that if he mentioned it to Trevor, he'd deny it completely. He'd probably deny that he snored, too.

Jenny was online. Good.

[11:05:31 AM] Trevor Evans: Hi can we talk?

[11:05:38 AM] Jenny Griffith: Sure, is something wrong?

[11:05:42 AM] Trevor Evans: Why would anything be wrong?

[11:05:49 AM] Jenny Griffith: You're up before noon and you started talking to me straight away.

[11:05:53 AM] Jenny Griffith: Something's wrong

[11:05:56 AM] Jenny Griffith: Tell me

[11:06:03 AM] Trevor Evans: Uh

[11:06:06 AM] Trevor Evans: I kissed Mike

[11:06:09 AM] Jenny Griffith: What?

[11:06:13 AM] Jenny Griffith: What did he do?

[11:06:16 AM] Trevor Evans: He ran off

[11:06:18 AM] Jenny Griffith: Shit

[11:06:22 AM] Trevor Evans: Well not right away

[11:06:29 AM] Jenny Griffith: ?

[11:06:33 AM] Trevor Evans: He kissed me back and we sort of did other things

[11:06:36 AM] Jenny Griffith: Like what?

[11:06:40 AM] Trevor Evans: Do I have to go into it?

[11:06:43 AM] Jenny Griffith: Just the rough area? I want to help

[11:06:47 AM] Trevor Evans: We sort of

[11:06:51 AM] Trevor Evans: I jerked us both off

[11:06:55 AM] Jenny Griffith: He let you?

[11:06:59 AM] Trevor Evans: He started it

[11:07:05 AM] Trevor Evans: we were high

[11:07:09 AM] Trevor Evans: he moved my hand

[11:07:13 AM] Jenny Griffith: and then?

[11:07:16 AM] Trevor Evans: We slept

[11:07:19 AM] Trevor Evans: He was gone when I woke up

[11:07:23 AM] Jenny Griffith: Right.

[11:07:25 AM] Jenny Griffith: Did he leave a note or anything?

[11:07:29 AM] Trevor Evans: Yeah

[11:07:32 AM] Trevor Evans: It just said sorry and stuff

[11:07:36 AM] Jenny Griffith: Right so he kissed you back and started everything else?

[11:07:39 AM] Trevor Evans: Yeah but that doesn't mean he wanted it does it?

[11:07:42 AM] Jenny Griffith: Calm down.

[11:07:45 AM] Jenny Griffith: Did you start anything? Maybe he's worried he pushed you to do it and now you'll be mad?

[11:07:47 AM] Trevor Evans: Idk

[11:07:52 AM] Jenny Griffith: You didn't do anything wrong. It's not like he can freak out at you for it

[11:07:55 AM] Trevor Evans: No but he's still freaking out!

[11:08:02 AM] Jenny Griffith: Yes but it's not your fault. You two are best friends. You'll be fine.

[11:08:09 AM] Trevor Evans: I guess

[11:08:12 AM] Jenny Griffith: Are you okay?

[11:08:15 AM] Trevor Evans: Sure

[11:08:19 AM] Jenny Griffith: How about we go out today? Pizza on me?

Trevor thought about it. He liked Jenny. He was especially fond of her now that she was taking time out for him when she didn't need to. Now she was offering him pizza.

[11:08:29 AM] Trevor Evans: Okay when?

[11:08:31 AM] Jenny Griffith: 2?

[11:08:35 AM] Trevor Evans: Sure... yeah sounds good.

[11:08:39 AM] Jenny Griffith: Okay I've got to go sort something first. Meet me at the usual place?

[11:08:42 AM] Trevor Evans: Sure, see you then.

Jenny sighed. She still cared about Trevor, even though she knew she shouldn't. She just couldn't imagine him not being friends with Mike. Even when they'd first been dating, Trevor would always blow her off to hang out with him, although, knowing what she did now, she wasn't surprised. She should have been angry but she didn't see the point. Trevor hadn't needed to tell her. He hadn't had to apologise. Now he seemed worried and he never seemed worried.

She wished that she had a little more time so she could talk to Mike, to find out how he felt about everything. She was a little concerned but she thought she knew him. She couldn't imagine him doing something he didn't want to, not even if he was high. Jenny found her phone and sent him a quick text message:

_Can we talk? Meet for pizza at 2:15? Usual place?_

Mike responded quickly:

_Sure, I'll see you there._

Trevor walked across the street to their regular pizza place. Jenny waved at him from the inside and he went in to join her. She smiled at him properly for the first time since they'd broken up. He wanted to hug her, then he wanted to kick himself for being so needy. He was supposed to want to kiss her and (possibly) get support from Mike, not the other way around.

"Hey," she said. "I got you a milkshake."

Fuck, his favourite. Why couldn't it be this easy with Mike? Except it was, that was what he loved. Mike knew his favourite everything but as soon as he wanted more, it was complicated. Mike was... standing in the doorway looking shocked.

"Hey," he said when he joined them at the table.

"Why are you here?" Trevor asked. Mike frowned, the way he always did when he was hurt but didn't want to show it. "I mean, I wasn't expecting you to be here, too." He didn't want Mike to think he was mad at him.

"Um, Jenny invited me," he said, looking at her quickly.

"Sorry," she said, throwing up her hands. "I wanted to get you both here."

They both looked at her, confused. Trevor noticed that Mike was purposely avoiding his eye.

"I just thought maybe we could hang out? I mean, I know we're not together any more," Jenny said, looking at Trevor. "I just thought maybe we could do something together."

Trevor knew that was a cover for whatever she was actually planning but she sounded genuine. They had hung out together a little when they'd been dating.

"So why didn't you tell us it was going to be all three of us?" Mike asked.

"I thought you might be a bit too worried about what Trevor would say," she replied. "You know, cause we haven't done this since the breakup."

"So you just offered us both free pizza and knew we'd turn up?" Trevor asked. He thought he might as well play along.

"Well it worked, didn't it?"Jenny laughed a little and Mike smiled, but he still avoided eye contact with Trevor.

Trevor realised why Jenny might want to fix things for him. She'd been friendly with Mike but since they'd split up, it had probably been pretty awkward. He just let her speak, hoping she had a bit of a plan, at least.

"So, how have you guys been?" she asked.

Trevor took a sip of his milkshake before answering. Mike was looking down at his hands.

"I've been good... we've been good, right?"

Mike looked up and sort of nodded. Trevor knew that if Jenny hadn't already known what had happened, she would have been suspicious. Before she could say anything else, a waitress asked if they were ready to order.

"I'll have a small hawaiian and... you guys usually split a large pepperoni, right?" Jenny said. Mike and Trevor both nodded.

"And to drink?"

Trevor still had half of his milkshake left but Jenny and Mike both ordered sodas.

"Guys, is there something wrong? Have you two fallen out or something? Jenny asked as soon as the waitress left. She was going to cut straight to it, then. She was looking right at him, like she expected him to say something.

Mike watched Trevor shift in his seat. Jenny was looking back and forth between them. Mike didn't know what to say. He was surprised when Trevor spoke first.

"We hung out last night and Mike disappeared when I was asleep."

"Really?" Jenny asked, but she didn't sound surprised. Had Trevor said something to her?

Their pizzas and drinks arrived but Jenny didn't drop it.

"Why did you leave, Mike," she asked. "Did something happen?"

Trevor was glaring at her now, like he'd give anything to shut her up.

"Yeah. It was my fault and I didn't want it to be awkward in the morning, so I left."

"But you're fine with what happened?" Jenny asked. Mike would bet she knew a lot more than she should. Trevor was suddenly very interested in his pizza.

"No, I mean, I started it. Why would I have a problem with it?" Mike replied.

Trevor looked up quickly. It was the first real eye contact they'd shared since last night.

"Did you... well you were high, right? Would you have done it sober?"

Jenny wanted to knock their heads together. She knew how Trevor felt for sure, but Mike? He seemed nervous but he wasn't angry and had apparently started it. It looked to her like they both wanted the same thing but neither of them wanted to say it first. If she'd had a chance to confirm it first, she could just put an end to this.

"Well I probably wouldn't have just... gone for it, no," Mike replied. "But, um, it wasn't bad."

Trevor's hand had paused on the way to grabbing a slice of pizza.

"Man, I'm not saying I'm going to leap on you whenever we're high or anything," Mike said quickly.

Mike was grinning but Jenny had seen this before. When Mike couldn't see a way out, he bulldozed through, getting it over as quickly as possible.

"I'm okay with it, too," Trevor said. "I just thought you weren't."

"Why wouldn't I be okay with it?" Mike asked.

"Er... you ran? I woke up and you were gone."

"I did it all. I thought you were going to be mad once the high had faded."

"There. See? Whatever you two did, you're both fine with it, okay?" Jenny said. Finally.

She watched the two of them grin at each other, the way they did across classrooms and she didn't know why she hadn't seen it before. They needed each other.

Mike got home and sat on his bed. He needed to find a way to thank Jenny; if they had stopped talking for as long as they did before Christmas, Mike would have gone insane. His phone buzzed in his pocket a few hours later, just after Grammy had gone down for a nap.

_Trevor: Can I come round?_

Mike sighed and got up to open his window. If he had texted him, he was already on his way. Sure enough, seconds later, Trevor turned the corner and waved at him from the street. Mike watched as he effortlessly climbed the tree next to his window and rolled in, landing softly on his bed.

"Hey, man," he said quietly. "I got bored."

"Oh?" Trevor always invited him over to his when he was bored. Mike usually went.

"Okay, fine, my mom was in a mood. I did want to see you, though."

He was leaning back, arms behind his head and Mike just wanted to kiss him again. Or at least ask him about what was happening with them. No, no, he couldn't. It was fixed now. Apparently, though, Trevor _could _bring it up.

"Mikey? Were you really cool with everything or was that just for Jenny?"

Mike opened his mouth to speak but it took him a while to know what he wanted to say.

"I'm... fine with it. I don't even know why I thought it was such a big deal."

"Yeah, I mean... it was practically masturbation, right?"

Mike nodded, even though he didn't want to play it down like that. Trevor was just being Trevor, though.

"It was... better... but yeah," he said.

"You wanna go again?" Trevor asked.

"Uh... if you do."

Fuck, he wanted to. He wanted to more than anything. He just didn't want to scare Trevor off. He couldn't help it, even now, even after Trevor had asked him, he was worried about ruining it. It all seemed too perfect, he kept expecting it to come crashing down around him.

"Look man, you're my oldest friend. It felt good, it's no big deal, if you want to, c'm'ere," Trevor said, moving closer to the wall to make room for him on the bed.

Mike crawled onto the edge of the bed and kissed him. Maybe if he'd thought about it, he wouldn't have done it. If he'd really thought it through, he probably would have stopped himself before kissing someone that might not feel the way he now knew that he did. He might have hesitated, at least, but he was a teenager and very possibly in love so he didn't. For the second time in 24 hours, Mike felt like he didn't ever want to move. This time, though, there was no heady feeling, not even the tiny lingering haze that had clung to his brain after the shock of Trevor's lips on his.

Now, he could feel everything. He didn't know what to focus on, he got preoccupied for a second with the way Trevor's fingers were brushing up and down his spine.

Trevor couldn't believe this was happening. Again. One thing he did know was that he hoped they wouldn't have to get high to do it again. This was so much better than before. It was probably a little bit to do with not having to worry about Mike running away again but Trevor thought it was more to do with how much more he was aware of now. There was no buzzing in his ears muffling the sound of Mike's breathing. Time was running at a normal pace, he was grounded, focused, completely sure that he was kissing Mike.

The taste of him was now a familiar one and, if he thought about it, it was exactly how he would have expected him to taste. It was somehow soft, safe, warm... Mike was moving again, just like before and Trevor forgot what he was thinking about. His cheeks were flushed with arousal and slight embarrassment; whenever their eyes met, he grinned and blushed harder. Trevor pulled on Mike's tshirt a little, moving him on top of him and he gasped when he felt him grind down on his cock.

"You're really okay with this?" Mike asked.

"Looks like it." Trevor grinned and kissed Mike quickly.

"You don't think it's weird or anything?"

Mike was hesitant, like he was worried. Trevor wanted to tell him that everything was fine but he didn't know how to put it. He didn't want Mike thinking he might have a problem with this.

"C'mon Mikey, it's us. We've done weirder."

It was pretty much a catchphrase, they'd always done worse or weirder or stupider, but this time he didn't think that they had. Mike just huffed a small breath of a laugh before raising his eyebrows.

"What if we did something else?" he asked.

"Like what?"

"Um... well you said you never got a blow job from Jenny, right?"

Fuck. Trevor felt his cock twitch in his jeans. Was Mike offering to suck him off? Granted, it was probably only so he would reciprocate but wasn't that how all sex worked?

"You want to... uh... try that?" he asked cautiously.

Mike nodded and Trevor noticed how bright his eyes seemed.

"Okay. Um, how? You want to take it in turns?" Trevor asked.

"I guess, yeah... I don't mind doing you first, unless you want to go last," Mike blurted out much too quickly. "You know, so you have a reason to do me."

Trevor wanted to tell Mike that he would be more than happy to suck his cock. He wanted to reassure him and tell him that he wanted nothing more than to explore all of him with his tongue but he didn't.

"No, that sounds good. Uh, if that's what you want."

Mike grinned and kissed him hard before sliding off of him. Mike's bed was a single so it was awkward and Mike had to press right up against him but Trevor didn't mind. He slipped an arm around him to make sure he didn't fall off as Mike started to fumble with the zip of his jeans. Just the feeling of his hands brushing over the bulge of his erection made Trevor shudder and he gasped as Mike finally unzipped him and slid his hand into his underwear. He felt Mike's fingers close around his cock as he pushed his underwear down quickly with his other hand. Mike started to stroke him slowly, shifting down on the bed to press quick kisses to his hips.

Caught up in the feeling of Mike's fingers, Trevor had almost forgotten where this was leading. He looked down quickly, just in time to see Mike's eyes flick up at him before he slipped his mouth over the head of his cock. Trevor hadn't been nearly prepared for the feeling of Mike's mouth; it was all he could do not to lace his fingers into Mike's hair and hold him there. That was before he even started to do anything.

Trevor bit his lip hard, remembering that Mike's grandmother was asleep, not wanting to wake her. Mike was moving his tongue tentatively, licking long strokes up the underside of his shaft and flicking it quickly across the tip.

"F-Fuck, Mike, have you done this before?" he asked as he swirled his tongue around in a way that made his head spin.

Mike shook his head, beginning to suck gently. He didn't know how he was so good at this, but Mike had always been good with his mouth. He looked down, watching Mike's lips slide down his cock and he couldn't believe he was really seeing this. His lips were a deep pink, his hair was ruffled from all of the kissing and Mike's eyes fluttered open, piercing blue and looking right at him. The eye contact, how Mike looked, the fucking feeling of him sucking his cock, it was too much.

"Mike – I'm gonna come," he breathed, a warning, expecting him to pull away. Instead, Mike relaxed and pushed down further, swallowing Trevor's cock right down his throat. Too much. Much too much. Trevor gasped as he came hard, spurting into Mike's throat. Aside from moaning softly, Mike barely reacted, swallowing quickly before pulling off of him. A small smile, a quick lick of his lips and Mike was crawling back up his body to kiss him.

Trevor could taste himself on his tongue, feel his erection pressing hard against his leg as Mike rocked against him, not even trying to hide his attempts to gain friction. Trevor moved back towards the wall to give Mike room to lie flat on his back. He kicked off his jeans quickly whilst undoing Mike's. He pulled them off for him, leaving their legs bare, tangled together on the bed. He wished he could take his time to explore, but now wasn't the time for that. He brushed his fingers over Mike's cock quickly, watching his eyes close as he arched up into his touch.

Trevor rolled onto his knees, moving between Mike's legs. He ran his hands down Mike's body, fingers catching on the fabric of his tshirt before he slipped them under the waistband of his underwear. Mike made one of the most perfect noises he'd ever heard as he mouthed around his cock, sucking and pressing his lips around it through the fabric. He could taste him and it was all he could do not to just pull his underwear down and start straight away. He was going to take this slowly, to make sure he remembered all of this in case they didn't do this again. He wanted to make sure it was good, to make sure that they would.

Mike's hips bucked as he nosed against him before pulling the fabric between them away, freeing his erection. Mike's breathing was already deeper, he was regulating it as if he was trying to control himself. Trevor didn't want that. He let one hand slide up under his shirt, fingers running across the soft skin of Mike's stomach as he licked a stripe along his cock. Mike swore softly under his breath, Trevor's name next on his lips. He gasped as Trevor sucked him into his mouth, running his tongue along the length of his shaft.

Trevor got caught up in tasting him, licking at the tip of his cock, sucking harder as Mike groaned. His fingers were running through his hair, twisting slightly. He was holding back but Trevor could tell he wanted to thrust into his mouth. He moved further down, relaxing when he felt his cock brush against the back of his throat. Mike sucked in a deep breath, hips twitching before his fingers tightened in his hair. He thrusted up once and Trevor almost choked.

"S-Sorry, fuck..." Mike breathed.

He sounded like he did when he was completely strung out. Trevor hummed a response, hoping to convey that he didn't mind. Mike groaned. Interesting. He hummed again, lower this time and he felt the vibrations run through his throat. They were no doubt the reason Mike was starting to thrust again, slowly, barely more than twitching his hips at first. Trevor sucked softly, flicking his tongue around the tip of Mike's cock, encouraging him. He wanted him to keep going, he wanted to feel him fuck his throat.

He glanced up, looking at Mike's face. His eyes were closed, his bottom lip drawn tightly between his teeth. A second later and Trevor was trying to breathe through his nose as Mike started to roll his hips rhythmically. Mike was pulling lightly at his hair, sending a shudder down his spine.

"Fuck... Trev -"

A pang of arousal spread through Trevor at the way his name sounded when Mike said it like that. He wished they could have had longer. Mike's knees drew up, giving himself more leverage to thrust with. He was breathing heavily now, tiny whimpers escaping him and Trevor braced himself.

"Can you... I'm close, okay?" Mike moaned and Trevor didn't know if he was going to be able to swallow but Mike had so he was going to damn well try. He squeezed Mike's hips gently, letting him know it was okay and flicked his tongue around in the way he really seemed to like. He did.

Mike pulled his head down suddenly and Trevor felt his cock twitch against the back of his throat before he started to come in bursts. Trevor focused on breathing, swallowing quickly before pulling away. He resisted the urge to press a kiss to Mike's leg before moving back up to lay down next to him. He suddenly felt a little unsure, maybe because Mike didn't have the best track record of sticking around after things like this. He couldn't exactly go anywhere this time, they were in his room, but Trevor didn't know what to expect.

He'd never even had to feel awkward around Mike before, not until recently but he didn't want to ruin this.

"That was... fuck... pretty amazing," Mike breathed.

"Yeah, it was."

"Thanks? I don't know what the usual post-blowjob protocol is..."

Trevor grinned. They were fine. Mike squeezed his hand quickly. There was no eye contact, but still... Trevor's heart did a tiny flip.

"Dude, I don't mean to kick you out or anything but-"

"I know, I know, it's late."

Mike's grandmother didn't really liked Trevor coming over, especially not late at night. She wouldn't say anything about it but it was easier for everyone if she didn't catch him there. For once, it actually felt like he would be getting caught.

"Sorry man," Mike said.

"It's cool, I'll see you soon, alright?"

What did he do? Did he kiss him? Were they still just friends... with benefits (Trevor flinched internally at the cliché) or did this change them? He sat up and grabbed his jeans, pulling them on with a grin. Did they really just do that? Mike stayed where he was, a matching smile on his face as Trevor walked over to the window.

"See you Monday, then?" he said.

"Yeah. See you Monday."


	7. Chapter 7

Mike awoke Sunday morning, still completely bowled over by what had happened. He should really thank Jenny. He wondered how much she knew. He thought Trevor must have told her something and he wondered what that meant. If he'd told her, he didn't feel ashamed but he'd been thinking about it enough to bring it up. It had been that thought that had given Mike the confidence to suggest oral sex, to squeeze Trevor's hand after. Before he had left, Mike had wanted to kiss him but he needed to check with Jenny first.

She wasn't on Skype so he sent her a text message asking if they could talk. Five minutes later, she logged on.

She told him what Trevor had told her, how she thought he felt about Mike.

Trevor sighed and put down his pen, flexing his fingers. He'd been working on his history paper for over an hour and he was bored. He didn't want to call Mike, he knew that he was working just as hard as he was (well, no, much harder), especially now that the were going out on Thursday.

Jenny had invited them out to see a movie. He didn't know what they'd be seeing but he liked spending time with the both of them. They ate lunch together most days now and it was kind of weird. If he was honest, Trevor didn't really know where he stood with either of them rght now but he'd decided not to dwell on it. He had to give Jenny credit; she was taking the fact that her boyfriend had pretty much dumped her for a guy very well. Exceptionally well, in fact.

Thursday rolled around quickly, their teachers all working them hard now that Christmas was over. Trevor wasn't too concerned, he always did well enough to pass and any time that he was struggling, Mike offered to help. It was in his interest too, in a way. He didn't want to go to college on his own. Trevor didn't really think much about college. All he knew was that he was going wherever Mike was. They'd decided years ago that they would go to college and get a place together and now Trevor couldn't imagine anything else happening.

When the final bell rang, at last, Trevor gathered his things up and grabbed his bag. He dropped his paper off on the way to the door (it wasn't brilliant, he hadn't had Mike's help, but it would do) and walked out to the front of the school. Mike and Jenny were both waiting for him at the gate.

"Ready to go?" he asked and they both nodded.

The movie theatre wasn't far from school so they walked, avoiding patches of ice and discussing what they could see.

"I heard they're reshowing Jurassic Park," Jenny said. "I don't think there's anything good out right now, so that's probably our best bet."

Trevor agreed, he'd be happy to see that again, especially in the cinema. They arrived and were glad to get out of the cold. The line for the tickets wasn't too long and they only had 10 minutes to wait until it started. They went in anyway, hoping there would be some interesting trailers.

Jenny moved into the aisle first, letting Trevor sit between her and Mike. It was a little odd; the last time Trevor had been here, it had been just him and Jenny but she seemed fine with it. A few other people came in before the trailers ended but they sat far enough away that the three of them might as well have been the only people there.

Jenny made a face a few times during the start of the film, raising her eyebrows like she was trying to indicate something. Trevor didn't know what she was trying to say and eventually, she gave up. Trevor wondered if he'd be able to get away with kissing Mike here. Not right then, not with Jenny next to him, but hypothetically. He really wanted to, especially when Mike turned to look at him and he realised that he'd been staring again.

He sat back and tried to focus on the film but then Mike and Jenny were sneaking glances at each other. Except, with someone sitting between them, it wasn't really sneaking. It felt a little like they were conspiring against him and then Mike's hand was on his on the armrest and he didn't care any more. He saw Jenny smile out of the corner of his eye and then he'd realised what she'd been trying to make him do.

If he'd known that Mike had wanted that, he would have done it as soon as they'd sat down. When he didn't react, however, Mike must have gotten the wrong idea. He started to withdraw his hand but Trevor caught it in time, squeezing his fingers lightly before letting their hands come to rest together in Mike's lap.

Mike stroked small circled onto Trevor's hand as they watched the film. He couldn't help noticing how natural this felt. When the film ended, Jenny spoke up first.

"You guys hungry, then?" she asked as the credits started to roll.

"Yeah, I am," Trevor said. "Mikey?"

"Yeah... how about the arcade?" Mike suggested.

Trevor's hand hastily slipped out of his as he stood up. He was a little disappointed but it wasn't like he'd expected them to keep holding hands when they walked to the arcade. The wind was bitter so Mike was grateful that it was only around the corner.

"Hotdogs?" Trevor asked as they walked past the food court.

Mike fished some money out of his pocket and handed it to him but Jenny said something about him owing her from last time. Trevor stood in line whilst Mike walked over to the token machine with Jenny, changing up enough cash to last them a few hours.

"You two seem, uh, comfortable with each other again," Jenny said after checking that Trevor was busy with the cashier.

"Yeah," Mike replied, unable to keep the smile off of his face. "I don't really understand what we're doing but, um, yeah, it's good."

"If you need to talk about it or anything, I'll listen, okay?"

Just then, Trevor carried a tray over to one of the tables so Mike just smiled and nodded at Jenny. It shouldn't have surprised Mike that Trevor knew how they liked their hotdogs – he must have come here with Jenny at some point because hers already had onions and mustard.

Mike noticed that Trevor had his eye on the air hockey table. If he remembered correctly (which of course, he did), Trevor was beating him 3-2. He finished his hotdog quickly and got up to put a token in the table.

"What, you want to get beaten again?" Trevor asked as he strode over.

He wasn't that bad but air hockey was one of those things that Trevor mysteriously excelled at. They played two games, bringing their total up to 4-3 (Mike had won the first game but he should have quit whilst he was ahead).

Jenny seemed fine with watching, refusing Mike's attempts at including her. After one loss, though, he realised he should probably stop for the sake of his pride. When Trevor got pumped up, there was usually no stopping him.

"You want a game, Jen?" Trevor asked.

She shrugged and walked over. Mike hoped she was good, there was nothing fun about watching someone get completely smashed.

It turned out that Jenny could really hold her own. Mike made a mental note not to play her in front of Trevor, he didn't want to risk losing to both of them, they wouldn't let him live it down. He watched their game, looking at the way Trevor leaned over the table, the way his shirt clung to him as he stretched out to make a particularly hard strike.

The evening had been surpringly perfect. Not that she'd expected anything to go wrong but Jenny wasn't used to hanging around with guys like this. She'd only really been to the arcade on dates and even then it was an obvious attempt to fill time before they'd moved on to sneaking into each other's bedrooms.

A few of her friends had been bugging her to hang out tomorrow night but suddenly a night of talking about shoes seemed even more boring than usual. She loved her friends, she really did, but she'd always been a little jealous of her older brothers and their friends. This was just more like her idea of fun.

She'd sort of expected it to be awkward. Not because of her background with Trevor, but because this was sort of a date for them. If she hadn't known something was going on between them, though, she didn't think she would have picked up on anything. They were the same as ever, sharing eye rolls over inside jokes, high fiving and practically finishing each other's sentences. There was something else there, too, small glances when the other wasn't looking, tiny smiles that spoke of more than friendship, but, ultimately, their relationship seemed unchanged. It made sense, really. If they'd both fallen for each other whilst they were best friends, why would they ever want that to change?

By the time they had to leave, both of the guys were insisting that she let them walk her home. Jenny was convinced this was one of the best nights out she had ever had.

Okay, so this was definitely weird. They were standing on the corner of Jenny's road, saying goodbye to her like he used to.

"What are you doing tomorrow?" Trevor asked.

He just really wanted to do something like this again. He didn't know why. He just really felt like the three of them should do more like this together.

"Don't you work Fridays?" Mike asked quickly.

"Actually, I have it off. Tina is having a party and I pretty much have to go. I don't want to."

Tina was Jenny's best friend. Trevor had never really spoken to her but he knew who she was. He'd heard about the party, it was supposed to be really big.

"Hey, how about you guys come with me?" she asked.

"Sure, okay," Mike replied.

There was something in his voice that worried Trevor. He sounded kind of annoyed but he couldn't think of any reason for him to be. They'd had a good night, hadn't they? Jenny thanked them and said goodbye before running back to her house to get out of the cold.

"Are you okay, man?" Trevor asked as they started to walk.

"M'fine."

It was a lie. Mike was never good at lying.

"Mikey, look at me," Trevor said, placing his hand on his arm. "What's wrong? Didn't you have fun tonight?"

"Yeah... just... why did you ask Jenny what she was doing tomorrow?"

"What do you mean? I enjoyed hanging out with you both and I wanted to do it again. I assumed you would, too."

"I did. But... Trevor, what is happening with us right now?"

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know. You held my hand earlier and we had a good time but, like, are we anything? Are you still interested in Jenny? I don't know what's going on."

Fuck. They hadn't spoken about it but Trevor had assumed they didn't need to.

"I don't know what to call this, what we are, but no, I'm not interested in Jenny. Or any girl. Or anyone. I thought you would have realised that I'd broken up with her for you."

"I sort of thought maybe you might have but I didn't know what to think," Mike said. "So are you saying we're exclusive?"

They'd made it back to Mike's. They walked over to the tree outside his window like they always did when they got back late. Mike didn't like to use the front door when his Grammy might be asleep.

"I... if you want to be?" Trevor half asked.

He didn't really think he could tell Mike what to do. He wasn't ready to talk about this but it didn't look like he had a choice.

"I wont be with anyone else, okay? I don't know when this happened but since I realised I was attracted to you, nobody else measures up," he said.

It was dark, but he thought he could see Mike blushing.

"I don't want to be with anyone else, either," Mike said quietly.

He looked around quickly to check that the street was clear before moving forwards and kissing Trevor. It was over in a second but it felt like a punch to the gut. Trevor wanted to kiss him again but now wasn't the time or place.

"You want to come up?" Mike asked.

"I shouldn't. I'm probably late already," Trevor said. "I got you in air hockey, though, don't forget."

"Like I could," Mike replied, grinning. "I'll get you next time, though."

"No way, man. I'll always be the king of air hockey and you know it."

Mike rolled his eyes when they got competitive. The first punch came in, barely grazing Trevor's ribs and he reciprocated with a phantom punch to the jaw. Four fake swipes and it was over, a secret handshake of sorts and then Trevor watched him climb the tree and slip into his room before he walked back to his own house.

Friday evening and Trevor was back at Mike's, leaning against the tree, waiting for him to get 'd agreed to meet Jenny at the party and Mike had wanted to run back to his for a shower. When Mike came out to meet him, Trevor recognised the shirt he was wearing as his own. He'd leant it to him to go home in a while ago. It looked good on him.

They walked fast. The party wasn't too far from Mike's but it was still really cold.

"Can I stay at yours tonight?" Mike asked. "I mean, it would really help. I don't want to risk going back drunk."

"Of course, man. I told my parents you'd be coming back anyway."

"Thanks," Mike said.

The door was open when they got there. Trevor recognised a few of the girls as friends of Jenny's and he looked around for her. She said she was going to get there early. Mike was looking around slightly nervoursly. Trevor knew that he found social situations awkward if he didn't know anybody. He was getting better with it, though.

They spotted Jenny in the kitchen and she looked relieved to see them. There were two girls standing with her, one already a little drunk. She looked a little confused for a second.

"Didn't you two break up?" she blurted out.

"Er, yeah, we're still friends, though," Trevor said.

Jenny ushered them out of the kitchen and sighed.

"I thought you'd never get here. They're just being so boring."

Mike was enjoying himself more than he usually did at house parties. The three of them had just found a corner to sit in with some snacks and drinks and Trevor's fingers had slowly slipped inbetween his own. Jenny's friends came over but they only stayed a little while before walking away again.

"Why did you come if you don't want to see them?" Mike asked.

"They're still my friends... I just have more fun with you guys."

Mike had to work hard not to lean into Trevor in front of everyone. He didn't know where they stood on that yet.

They left the party relatively early, but it was still around eleven. Jenny was supposed to be sleeping there but she'd decided against it.

"How did you get here?" Mike asked.

The house was pretty far from Jenny's and it was cold and icy.

"My dad drove me over earlier," she said.

"Do you want to stay at mine?" Trevor asked.

He looked at Mike quickly as if he'd remembered how he'd worried the night before. Mike just smiled. He didn't want the night to be over yet and he really didn't want to have to walk all the way to Jenny's in the cold.

"Are you sure? Wouldn't your parents mind?" she asked.

"Nope, you can crash in my room and we can take the guest room," Trevor said, grinning at Mike a little. It was amusing that his parents wouldn't mind them sleeping together.

"Yeah, that would be brilliant," she said.

They walked back quickly, voices hushed as they walked through Trevor's front door and up the stairs. They shut the door of the guest bedroom behind them and piled onto the bed. They might as well have been back at the party; they spent a while just talking, laughing as quietly as possible. When Trevor's arm slipped around his shoulder, Mike almost jumped. He couldn't help but find it surreal, the way that they could do this, that Jenny didn't mind. Mike leaned into his touch, smiling a little.

"It's late," Jenny said suddenly, even though she didn't look tired. "I'll see you in the morning, okay?"

"Tonight was fun," Mike said. He kicked his shoes off and pulled off his jeans before getting back on the bed whilst Trevor followed suit.

"Yeah, it was."

He slipped his arm back around him again as he climbed into bed with him.

"So, um, I guess we're sleeping together for the first time..." Mike said.

"We always sleep together, man."

"You know what I mean."

They snuggled down and Trevor couldn't help rolling his eyes.

"Yeah, I know what you mean."

"We need to turn the light off."

"It cold," Trevor groaned.

"I know. You're warm."

"I'll do it. On five... fuck, it's going to be cold..."

Trevor counted down from five, bracing himself for the cold but when he got to two, Mike jumped over him and ran to switch off the light. He was cold when he jumped back into bed, cold enough to make Trevor shiver but he let him snuggle up to him anyway.

"You didn't need to do that."

"Did I earn myself a kiss?" Mike asked.

Trevor smiled, even though Mike couldn't see it and then he found his lips in the dark.


End file.
